Forms of Elegance
by Shay McSudonim
Summary: Does anyone else think that the Nobles are very much like Tolkien's elves from "Lord of the Rings"?
1. Chapter 1

AN: I'll be continuing this, unless people beg me to stop. And I'm not putting it under crossover, because there aren't any LOTR characters in this, just the Noblesse ones in a rip-off of Middle Earth. However, I have never been to Middle Earth, so I tend to draw from gaming experience. This is an alternate envisioning of how Frankenstein's household could have come together. I'm trying to take things seriously, I really am, but I find myself incapable of writing anything but borderline crack. Ah, well, enjoy...

Forms of Elegance

There were six of them in the party: two paladins, two archers, and two magic-users. They formed an odd group, as two of them were obviously Elven nobility, while their comrades were not only Human, but common as dirt.

The ranger, Rael, who was watching them, wondered what the purpose behind this strange fellowship could be. Certainly, the two nobles held themselves silent and mostly aloof from their companions.

Ah, the Humans must be servants, then. Curious about their quest (and wanting to talk to the beautiful silver-haired girl), Rael moved across the tavern until he was in front of their table.

"Greetings, my brethren," he addressed them, as Rael was, himself, an Elf. He didn't recognize their exact family (because it was near-on three centuries since he'd been to court), but he could tell they were important.

"Hey," said the red-haired Human boy who was with them. "Regis, do you know this guy?"

Rael was annoyed. "Watch your tongue in front of your betters, boy."

To his surprise, the Human not only wasn't afraid of him, but narrowed his eyes in annoyance and proceeded to ignore him. "What about you, Seira? He said something about being 'brethren'. That's like family, right?"

The Elves also seemed to dislike Rael's choice of words. The silver-haired boy scoffed at the ranger: "Such inelegance. Why do you insult members of our party?"

"Your party? Oh, forgive me, I assumed they were servants." Rael gave a frivolous laugh. "It's not often that one sees Elves in the company of Humans. Our people are not known for their tolerance, especially the nobles."

The two Elves—Regis and Seira, from what the Humans had called them—glared coldly at him. The Humans, however, had noticed something shiny in Rael's last statement and proceeded to make idiots of themselves in their amazement.

"Wait," said the shortest of the Humans, the brown-haired magic user. "You mean, you're an Elf? A real Elf? We've never seen one before!"

The Ranger was so struck by their stupidity, he forgot for a moment that he wasn't speaking to them. "What do you mean? You have two pure-blooded Elves in your party..."

"What?" said the brown-haired female archer. "What do you mean? The six of us are Humans."

"Maybe he thinks Regis and Seira are Elves," offered the blue-haired female sword-wielder. "They're certainly pretty enough."

Rael was truly impressed. "You really are morons, aren't you?"

As soon as he said it, Rael realized that he'd made a mistake, but he just couldn't help himself. This was why Elves and Humans didn't mix: Humans were just so thick-headed. Sure enough, both Regis and Seira had stood up. "Is there something you wanted?" the Elfin girl asked. "Because, if not, I'd ask you to let us finish our meal."

Right, Rael had a reason for putting up with these idiots. "I was simply curious as to what brought you to the human world."

The two Elves exchanged a glance, and then Regis spoke. "I am traveling the world as part of my coming-of-age ceremony," he answered.

Then Regis and Seira sat down, to indicate that the conversation was over.

Rael stood there a few moments, contemplating that. He'd forgotten about the Humans, until...

"Hey, Mr. Elf," said the swordsman. "Do you have magic powers? Can you talk to trees and run really fast, like the Elves in the stories?"

Rael soon found an excuse to leave, after that.

* * *

><p>Once he was gone, the Humans began talking among themselves.<p>

"Wow, a real Elf!" marveled Suyi. "We never really saw anyone besides Humans in Escoria Village. Now we've seen a Dwarf and an Elf!"

Ikhan smiled at his fellow magic-user. "Hey, Regis, can you believe he thought you were an Elf too?"

At this, Regis looked uncomfortable. He'd been meaning to tell them, he really had. How they hadn't guessed it he had no idea. He had pointed ears, for crying out loud...

But the quartet of Humans had never thought Seira and himself to be anything out of the ordinary. In the week or so they'd know them, the Humans had treated them like friends rather than superiors—and Regis liked it. He didn't want things between them to change.

Now, however, there was really no way around it.

"Actually," he sighed. "We are Elves; me and Seira both."

Wait for it...

"Really?"!

Regis nodded miserably. "Yes. I'm almost at my two-hundredth year, so I'm spending a score of months in the human world, as part of my initiation to adulthood."

Their reactions were not what he expected:

"You mean you're two-hundred years old?" said Suyi.

"Wow!" exclaimed Shinwoo.

"So, you really are nobles, then?" Ikhan wanted to know.

"This is so cool!" Yuna was smiling.

At this point, Regis finally felt able to meet their eyes. When he looked up, he saw nothing less than the affection and interest he'd seen before Rael had come over and disrupted things.

Regis couldn't even begin to describe how good that made him feel. He sat up a little straighter, and regained his composure.

"Hang on," said Shinwoo. "Elves are really powerful, right?"

"Most are, yes," Regis answered.

"Back when we first met you guys," Shinwoo continued, "there were these knights harassing you and you two couldn't do anything about it. We had to come in and beat them up for you."

Seira was the next to speak. "It is not that we couldn't do anything, we just chose not to. We aren't supposed to use our powers around Humans; they might get hurt."

Ikhan thought about this. "So, essentially, you're stuck outside your home for almost two years, and you're not allowed to do anything against the people who antagonize you?"

Regis sighed. "It's supposed to teach us 'patience' and 'understanding'."

Yuna shook her head. "Sounds like a dumb idea to me. Don't worry, though, you've got us! We'll help protect you!"

Seira smiled softly at this. Regis merely nodded, because he wasn't sure quite what to say.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day, the party was back on the road. The sky wasn't clear, and when they walked along high ground, they were able to see the patchwork shadows of the clouds on the ground. Suyi and Shinwoo were singing a travel song to pass the time. Suyi actually had a rather nice voice. Unfortunately, the same could not be said for Shinwoo.

_"Sixty-five Balrogs asleep on the bridge_

_Sixty-five Balrogs asleep!_

_Shoot one down, watch as it drowns_

_Sixty-four Balrogs asleep on the bridge..."_

Regis grit his teeth. It had been thirty-five Balrogs already and he was getting sick of it. He turned to Shinwoo before he could start another verse. "And what, pray tell, is a Balrog?" he asked.

His comrade was surprised. "You mean you don't know? But you're an Elf! You've probably seen dozens of them. Right Seira?"

The archer shook her head. "In all honesty, I've never seen nor heard of a Balrog before."

Yuna, who was walking beside her, spoke next. "Really? That's surprising. You see them fairly often around Escoria. Well, they're kind of like Watchers, and kind of like Trolls, and kind of like shadows."

"Meaning?" Seira wanted to know.

"They guard passageways." explained Ikhan. "You see them on bridges a lot, although sometimes you see them in canyons, as well. They look like Humans formed of shadows and mixed with an element - usually fire. They tend to favor element-infused whips as a weapon. Anyway, they won't let you past until you've met their terms."

"Their terms?" asked Regis.

"Yeah. Every Balrog is different," cut in Shinwoo. "Some of them want a toll; some of them want to fight the strongest member of your party; a few of them want to eat one of your party before they let you past. Regardless of the terms, They're fine to talk to, so long as you don't try to sneak past them."

"Good to know," noted Regis.

For another few minutes, things were blessedly silent. Then, Shinwoo suddenly remembered something.

"Hey, Suyi. How many Balrogs were we on?"

* * *

><p>What with all the traveling time spent singing and joking and trying to hack into the Union's network of sanctuary portals, Regis had assumed that time spent on the road was time wasted. And so he was not in the least surprised when Ikhan insisted they go on a side trip to see the rapids of the River Undule. What did surprise him was when the human mage took out the enchanted gemstone, which Regis had seen him working on for the past week, and tossed it into the water.<p>

"What was that about?" the Elf wanted to know.

"We're making our own mana-harvesting network," explained Ikhan. "We've got a dozen stones in ten rivers and two volcanoes."

"A mana-harvesting network?" asked Seira.

"It's Humanity's most powerful brand of magic," said Ikhan. "The Union uses it to power their places of sanctuary, but smaller parties like to use it as well. We've been working on ours since we were six and we usually access it through these," he held up the amulet around his neck. "The stones draw some of the mana from the flow of the water, or from the fire of the volcano and store it for later use. It's like a stockpile of energy, which you can pull out in an emergency."

"You mean these ridiculous things actually have a purpose?" Regis asked, mildly stunned. He had protested against wearing the amulet he'd been given, as Ikhan and Shinwoo had made their own amulets as ostentatious as possible, and also insisted on referring to them as 'bling'. They had argued about it for a good half an hour before Regis finally gave in.

In fact, memories of that very argument were swirling around Regis' head as he asked, in exasperation, "Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"

"Honestly?" said Shinwoo. "We just didn't think of it. The amulets are a symbol of our team more than anything else. We don't use them on a regular basis because, whenever possible, it's really better to use your own power. If you rely amulets in place of your own mana, it'll slow the growth of your abilities."

Regis considered this. "Then, what are they used for?"

"Well, the Union's got the largest network of them in the world. They've got enough raw power to perform resurrection spells—making them nearly impossible defeat in battle. Put that together with their near-on impenetrable sanctuaries, and you've got why Humans now consider themselves most powerful among the Creatures of Light and Darkness," said the Human mage.

"What can you do with yours?" Seira wanted to know.

Ikhan shrugged. "We can use them to form sanctuary spells, but they're not powerful enough to do much else, yet."

Regis and Seira exchanged an intrigued look behind their comrades' backs. Regardless of the fact that these Humans had helped them upon their first meeting, they hadn't expected any level of competency from their chosen party. Given how the four of them seemed to act about five years younger than they actually were, the Elves had simply assumed them to be easygoing simpletons. Not that Regis and Seira hadn't liked the quartet, mind you... but still, knowing that they dabbled in the most advanced of Human magic brought a note of respect into their opinions of their new-found allies.

* * *

><p>A week later saw them at their first destination: Ilumonae village, home of the best bow-maker around. It was for Yuna that they stopped here. Unlike her three peers, she came from a long line of warriors all in the same specialty: archery. Once she was fifteen, she was officially old enough to wield one of the Starwood bows made by the Jerrin family, and it was tradition for each new member to make the journey to Ilumonae themselves, to prove their worthiness to carry on the family reputation. Whether the Ilumonae bows were of superior quality or not, this arrangement was certainly good for the Jerrin family.<p>

The six of them were in good spirits as they made their way over to the bow-maker's house, ignoring the suspicious looks caused by Regis and Seira's presence.

As far as villages went, Ilumonae was rather more affluent than their own home of Escoria. In comparison with Regis and Seira's home, however, it was a fairly shoddy place. Meaning there was some dissonance in opinion on the place between the two species of the party, leading to some good-natured bantering which distracted from other issues.

When they arrived at the correct building of the artisans' district, they saw a middle-aged man sitting outside on the lawn, carving a bit of wood.

"Hello," said Yuna.

"Good morning to you," said the man. "You have the look of one of the Suh family about you, if I'm not mistaken. Just turned fifteen?"

Yuna smiled. "That's right. I'm Suh Yuna. My parents send their regards."

He nodded. "Give mine to them. Well, then, Yuna, I've got a few different bows for you to choose from. Do you have a defined style of fighting yet?"

She thought about it. "I usually snipe, when possible, providing cover in a retreat or support during an attack."

He nodded again. "A team player, then. Not surprising, seeing your entourage."

She laughed. "I suppose."

"Might I suggest this one, then? It's solid. Not ideal for trick-shooting, but it'll last forever."

Yuna examined it. "I like this one, especially the carvings." She gave the other bows a cursory glance before announcing, "I'll take it."

Yuna dug around in her bag for some currency, and a few moments later, the transaction was completed.

The rest of them were congratulating Yuna on her new status as an official member of her family's warriors, and they were preparing to leave, when Yuna thought of something.

"Seira. Did you want to buy a new bow, as well?"

Seira looked a bit uncomfortable at being put on the spot, but she considered it. "Well, I suppose it couldn't hurt to look," she said.

"Hang on," said the bow-maker. "She's an Elf, isn't she?"

"What of it?" asked Shinwoo, a hard edge to his voice.

"Elves are bloody overpowered already. Those two could kill us all right now without breaking a sweat, and you want me to give them one of my best bows? What have they ever done for us but hide in their forests and use 'non-violence' as an excuse to avoid helping us in war?"

"But, Seira does use a bow" pointed out Ikhan. "And hers is pretty out of date, by the looks of it. I don't think they've made them in that style for the last hundred years."

Jerrin snorted. "More like five-hundred, but that only proves my point. Not only are they powerful, they're arrogant about it. 'Not only can I kill you, I can do it with a weapon that's so old it's hardly useful anymore.'"

Seira studied her current bow. "I inherited this from my uncle" she said. "It's made of heartwood from one of our ancient trees. It's four-hundred years old and it will last for another thousand years." She looked at the bow-maker. "I didn't realize using it was offensive. I apologize. If you allow me to do business with you, it will let me avoid offending others in such a way in the future."

Her words made the man reconsider, if a bit reluctantly. "Well, I suppose one has to start somewhere." He thought a moment. "Just be sure to upgrade your weapons every fifty years or so, as bow styles tend to change very rapidly compared to the Elven lifespan."

Seira nodded.

Jerrin rubbed his hands together. "Now, then. What kind of bow were you looking for?"

* * *

><p><em>"Shoot one down, watch as it drowns,<em>

_thirty-two Balrogs asleep on the bridge..."_

They were back on the road, headed this time to Escoria, as they wanted to show Regis and Seira their home before going off on their next quest, and Regis felt that he was beginning to lose his mind.

"Do you really have to sing the song?"

Ikhan smiled wearily at him. "Of course we do... it's traditional in our village to sing this while traveling; shows anyone listening that you're not afraid of them."

"I thought you _were_ afraid of the things out there?"

Ikhan glanced at the trio of Suyi, Yuna, and Shinwoo, who were harmonizing away without a care. "Notice how I'm not singing?" he asked.

"Ah, good point." There was silence a moment.

"So," said Regis. "What's your home like?"

"Oh, it's just a small village," said Ikhan. "We're a warrior town; we protect the surrounding lands in exchange for a share of the crops and such."

"Sound like a responsible profession."

"Yeah," agreed the Human mage. "but it winds up being about twice as much work as it should be. You see, we keep having to police our own, in order to stop people from extorting our protectorate. That's what my family does, by the way. We're one of the four clans that keeps track of everyone and makes sure nothing goes on that shouldn't."

Regis was just about to make another comment, when they rounded a curve in the canyon they were walking though, and saw that something—scratch that, some_one_ was blocking their path.

The creature before them looked as though a sculptor had taken a lump of black clay and formed a Human out of it. Somewhere in the process of firing, however, it seemed to have cracked, and blue veins of light ran though his body. His eyes glowed indigo, and he carried two glowing, blue whips.

"Is that...?" began Regis.

"Yeah," said Shinwoo. "That's a Balrog."


	3. Chapter 3

The Humans immediately took charge.

The Balrog watched interestedly. He had heard the Humans singing, and wanted to see what kind of people they were, to say such things about his kind.

"Ikhan, you're best at negotiation," said Shinwoo. "Go see what his terms are."

Ikhan sighed. "I suppose I'd better." He looked aside at Regis and Seira. "Last time Shinwoo negotiated, he just attacked and we fought for a good half-hour before finding out that the terms were a simple toll," he explained.

Yuna giggled at the memory.

Seira looked to Suyi, who stood at her left. "I thought you said Balrogs were made of fire?" she looked a bit unsettled.

Suyi shrugged. "Most of them are. But you do see lightning, occasionally."

Seira was confused. "I didn't think lightning was an element."

Suyi snickered. "Want to try telling him that?"

Seira gave a weak smile at the thought, and they both turned to watch Ikhan as he gave Regis his cloak of protection, which he had removed as a gesture of goodwill, and walked forward to meet the dark figure.

* * *

><p>"Hello!" said Ikhan brightly.<p>

The Balrog nodded and flicked one of his whips, absently. "These are my terms, Human: I get the blood spilled by ten of my lashes from one of your number. Then, you all may pass."

Ikhan tilted his head. "Those are the only terms you'll accept?"

The Balrog nodded.

Ikhan backed away, slowly. He took his robe back from Regis and stuck his arm into one of the sleeves."Let's go," he said to his teammates.

They did turn around and start walking, but Yuna, Suyi, and Shinwoo were groaning and complaining the entire time.

"It's been half a day since the last fork..."

"Of all the dumb luck!"

Suyi just sighed and swung her sword about in frustration.

"We're not going to fight?" Regis was curious.

Shinwoo shook his head. "Nah. Lightning Balrogs are usually stronger than the fire ones. Fire, you can sometimes fight your way past, if you don't like the toll. But get into a fight with a lightning Balrog and you'll probably die."

Regis nodded, and started to consider something which he very much didn't want to consider.

He knew he and Seira could probably defeat this creature, but doing so would put his comrades at risk. True, they hadn't been a team for more than a fortnight, and Regis couldn't say that he didn't find the four of them annoying, but their party was also the only group of Humans to treat them decently. So fighting it was not an option.

He also knew that the other choice would be unpleasant, and that submitting himself to an avoidable indignity was inelegant... but these were his allies, and he could make things easier for them, if he did this. After exchanging a glance with Seira, he stopped walking and took a breath."I could fill the terms, you know," he said. "It wouldn't be much of a sacrifice for me."

The four Humans stopped walking at the unexpectedness of this and turned back to look at him. The overly-dignified Elf was the last person they would have expected to make such an offer. For a moment, no one said anything. Then, Suyi and Yuna smiled fondly at him. They moved back so that they were standing on either side of him, and they then did something which Regis did not expect: they hugged him. After a moment, they each took one of his hands and led him away from the Balrog.

Shinwoo clapped him on the shoulder once they'd caught up."Thanks for the offer, Regis, but it's probably better to take the long way around."

"You said it was an extra half a day's travel," the Elf pointed out, not wanting them to think he was weak.

"Well, yes," Ikhan said, "and if time were important, any of us would be willing to take the terms. But, honestly, we're more or less meandering about as it is. We wasted, what, three days at that trade festival?"

Regis sighed in relief. "I suppose," he said. Even if the terms wouldn't have been much for him, long term, they would have been no less of a multi-faceted pain-fest.

"Besides," pointed out Shinwoo, "you and Seira are our strongest fighters. We may run into something unavoidable next time, and it wouldn't do us any good to save half a day's travel if it meant weakening one of our strongest members before a crucial fight. We'll just take the Kright bridge. It's only two day's travel from the fork, and that one's guarded by Ijom. She'll accept a sparring match with one of us. You've got first dibs on that fight if you want it, Regis"

"I'd like that," said the Elf.

* * *

><p>Soon, the group was out of sight, and the Balrog was left staring at the road ahead of him.<p>

These weren't your average heroes, then, he thought, as they seemed to have a bit of sense between them. It was amazing how much warriors seemed to hate turning back, even if going on meant doing something painful and stupid.

It also wasn't often one saw Humans and Elves traveling together, now that he thought about it. Especially ones so young. And it didn't seem to be an unequal relationship either. He'd seen the two species of the team exchanging words and gestures of affection like it was nothing. Not to mention the fact that they had turned back, not out of an unwillingness to endure pain for the greater good, but out of mutual concern for their comrades.

The whole thing had been a test, of course. The Balrog done this many times, and the conditions were well-controlled: anyone who looked like they were in a hurry got off with a toll; everyone else got the blood terms. That was the whole point—to see what they'd do when convenience was the only stake. He'd seen many different ways of deciding the one to pay: drawing straws, forcing the weakest member, a volunteer.

It was the choice that mattered, of course. After they'd made that (and he'd made sure they were going to go through with it) the experimental groups also got off with a toll. But it was the extreme minority who decided to avoid the test altogether.

Chuckling at the unexpectedness of it, the Balrog dutifully grabbed a scroll and a pen from behind a rock and began to write down a description of what happened to send to his boss later.

Before rolling up the parchment, he signed his name with an extreme flourish. If one didn't already know that his name was 'Tao' it would have been hard to distinguish the three letters amongst the numerous underlinings and decorative loops.

He grinned to himself. Here was something you didn't see every day: Elves with some degree of humility, and Humans who weren't afraid of power. Perhaps these kids would be able to help them accomplish their goals. God knew Raizel was due for some luck.

He had to tell the wolf and the sharp-shooter about this...


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Some of you may be wondering why I make our heroes walk everywhere. It sure seems like horses would be faster, doesn't it? Well, apart from Shadow of the Colossus, I've never played a game that used horses... and Agro was sometimes more trouble than he was worth. Usually, you have some sort of portal or gate scroll system to help you get around, but in this version of middle-earth the Union controls all the portals, so no efficient travel for our heroes. Think of it as taking the scenic route... all the time.

* * *

><p>Well, after two weeks of being back home and catching up with the family Shinwoo was just about climbing up the walls from boredom. And, while the others didn't share his restlessness to quite so extreme a degree (Seira and Regis had actually found the Human village very interesting), the rest of the party was rested and ready to go off on their first real quest.<p>

Unfortunately, finding something they could all do was proving to be rather troublesome. Regis and Seira had gotten a few offers of work, but those offers did not extend to the rest of them and so they'd declined. So far, all they'd gotten was the offer to act as bodyguards during a journey for a man with a wagon-load of what they strongly suspected was contraband. They quite enjoyed not having a criminal record, and so were looking for something else.

They only had to wait four days before something interesting came up.

It started when a gray-haired man came into town.

Shinwoo, who had first seen him from the back, assumed he was elderly, and had greeted him with an enthusiastic, 'hey, gramps!'. When the man turned around, however, the group of them saw that he didn't look to be any older than twenty-five. Shinwoo, of course, had thought his mistake hilarious and refused to call him anything else.

The man was clearly annoyed by the nickname, and insisted that his real name was 'M-21', but the other three humans of Shinwoo's team had decided they liked 'gramps' better. The guy tended to flinch slightly when they used their nickname for him, so, all things considered, it was surprising when he was the one who eventually offered them a job.

The seven of them stood on in front of the local inn, where the man was staying.

"What's the job?" asked Shinwoo, looking curious.

The man regarded the six of them. "My team and I have misplaced a rather important artifact of our benefactor's."

"Something got lost?"

"Yes. A large, silver earring in the shape of a cross."

"Any clues on where it is now?"

"Well, we know exactly where it is... it's getting it out that's the problem. It fell into a lake, if you can call it that." He shrugged. "With all the alligators, it's really more like a gigantic bog."

"Alligators?" asked Suyi. She looked excited. She and Shinwoo hadn't been able to fight anything recently.

"We know that the object is definitely in the lake, then?" asked Ikhan.

The man nodded. "Yes. It's beneath our dignity to dig around in there ourselves, so I thought I'd hire some kids to do it."

"What's the pay for this job?" Shinwoo wanted to know.

"Five hundred gold pieces," said the man.

The six of them huddled together a little ways away. "This seems like an interesting challenge to me," Ikhan said. "Want to vote on it?"

"All in favor?" asked Suyi, raising her own hand.

Five other hands went up.

"None opposed, then," she said. "Right," she announced, "turning back to the man. "Looks like we'll take the job."

* * *

><p>Three days of drowning Balrogs later, they were just coming into sight of a rather nice-looking house.<p>

"Is that the place, gramps?" asked Shinwoo.

"Yes," said M-21. "That's it. You six can stay with us, in the house, until you're finished."

"Can we see the lake first?" asked Ikhan.

"Certainly," said M-21. He led them around the back of the house. Sure enough, there was a large lake that looked like it was perhaps twelve fathoms deep in places. The part-members soon lost interest in what M-21 was doing as they discussed how to tackle the challenge before them. Yuna pulled out a piece of cloth, and a bit of charcoal and began taking notes. "There was a town about a mile back where we can buy supplies," she noted. "What will we need for this one, do you think?"

"Do we need anything?" asked Regis. "Couldn't we just drain the water and search the dry lake bed?."

His companions looked at him in surprise. "Well, no," said Ikhan, "_we_ couldn't. Why, can _you_?"

Regis nodded. "Of course."

"How much energy would it take?" Yuna wanted to know.

Regis thought about it. "Quite a lot, but it's not like I'm going to have to run messages afterward."

"But we don't know what's in that lake," pointed out Shinwoo. "For all we know, there could be a sea serpent down there. If we took away all its water, we'd have to run pretty fast, Regis."

"A sea serpent?"

"Maybe a lake serpent? How should I know what's living in there?"

Regis was smiling. "A lake serpent..."

Ikhan was grinning ear to ear. "Silly Shinwoo, everyone knows lake serpents don't exist."

"Fine," Shinwoo was annoyed, "probably not a lake serpent, but alligators, certainly. They'd be angry with us for messing with their home."

"We could handle the alligators," said Suyi. "It's not like we're helpless."

"But taking all the water would kill the fish," said Yuna. "And I don't want to hurt the fish. We should try to change the lake as little as possible. It's not like we have a time limit, right?"

They turned to M-21, who shook his head. "Just try to get it done in the next month," he said.

"Can we still get rid of the alligators?" Suyi wanted to know. "that would help the fish, wouldn't it?" she asked, looking to Yuna for support.

Yuna, however, didn't agree. "No, that would hurt the fish."

"How would taking away the alligators hurt the fish? They eat the fish, don't they? Seems like it would help them."

"No," said Yuna. "It would only hurt them if they ate all the fish. If there weren't any alligators at all, there would be too many fish, the fish would eat all the food, and then the fish would all die."

Suyi blinked at Yuna."That doesn't make sense," she said.

Yuna shrugged. "That's the way things are." Then, she remembered why she'd brought up the topic and turned back to her list. "If we're not doing this all at once, we'll need some way to break up this task, so that means supplies. Any ideas?"

"Definitely rope," said Suyi. "Ikhan, think you can do that spell that isolates off sections of an area from each other?"

"Don't know if that's a good idea," he said. "We'll end up trapping fish in the same region as the alligators with no place to run. Might also separate mother alligators from their young."

"Well, we can't hurt the baby alligators," said Shinwoo, who had decided that Yuna was oversensitive on the subject of lake-dwelling reptiles. "Since we need them to grow up and eat fish. What about a grid on the surface of the lake to mark off sections for us to search?"

"Hmm, I like the sound of that," said Ikhan. "We could probably get through this one in eight sections and search one section a day. It likely won't take all eight, but you never know."

"What will we be we using for the actual search itself?" asked Yuna. "Ikhan, you and Regis will be doing most of the spell-work for that one, right?"

"Right," said Regis. "Though my skills are more combat-oriented than search and identify."

"Well, we can always use another person to help maintain the spells we use," said Ikhan. "Since we'll be underwater for this one, I'll set it up so that everyone uses their own mana to power the spells they need, and all I'll have to do is focus and channel the power." He turned to the swordsman.

"Shinwoo, you've still got that water-amulets we made when we had to clean out Mr. Kilkargee's fishing-lake, right? We can use those again, though we'll need to make some for Regis and Seira to wear."

"I've got them," confirmed Shinwoo, digging around in his bag. "Yuna, we'll need to buy some blank amulets and a few gemstones, as well."

"Got it," Yuna added those to her list. Then, she noticed Regis and Seira were looking out of the loop. "Oh," she said. "Ikhan knows a spell that lets him breathe underwater. He can put it onto blank amulets as well. They tend to drain your mana, though, so we try not to use them too much."

"We can't just use the mana-network to power them?" Regis wanted to know.

"Well, we could," said Ikhan, "but then we'd level-up slower. Why not take the opportunity to exercise our powers? It only makes them stronger, in the long run."

"We'll also need light while we search," said Suyi. "We'll need to see where we're going, and we'll want to know if anything's coming to attack us."

Regis conjured up a floating lantern spell. "I can cover that part," he offered. "This one doesn't take much energy."

"Ok," said Yuna. Regis let his spell dissipate; Yuna was looking over her writing. "Playing field: check; crucial spells: check. Hmm. We should probably get some hair-ties for us girls. Don't want to be looking at a cloud of hair the whole time. Oh, hey," she turned to Ikhan and Regis, "do either of you have a way to detect silver?"

"I think so," said Ikhan. "We should be able to use it within a radius of a few yards."

"Need any materials for it?"

"No. I should be able to add that one on our bling."

"Right, then. That covers the technical side of things. Suyi, Shinwoo, do you need any special weapons or supplies?"

Shinwoo hefted his sword and thought about it. "No, I think I'm good," he said. Suyi nodded her agreement.

Shinwoo then thought of something. "Hey, I know we're not doing the isolation spell... but what happens if it turns out the earring was eaten by a fish or an alligator?"

This, of course, sparked off a whole new round of conversation.

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, M-21 headed back to the house. Behind him, the kids were splitting into two groups: one to survey the area, and one to to into town to get supplies. Shinwoo, Yuna, and Seira were going to get a feel for the lake and the animals living there, and Suyi, Regis and Ikhan were headed to the marketplace.<p>

M-21 let himself into the house, and made his way to the living room, only to find that the inhabitants were watching the lake where he'd just come from though the glass window that was almost as large as a wall.

In the room were two Balrogs: his teammates. One was lightning, and one was fire. The blue one was looking chipper, and the red one offered a nice counterbalance, as he was perpetually placid, despite his fiery appearance. Unlike most Balrogs, the fire elemental wielded a bow, which he carried with him at all times. The two of them were up against the glass, looking curiously at the newcomers. When he entered, however, they turned their attention to him.

"Hi, '21," said fire.

"Welcome back!" said lightning.

M-21 nodded at his friends. "Takeo, Tao," he greeted them. Then, he turned to the other two occupants of the room. They both looked to be Elfin, though in truth, one was actually Human. The Human was blond with blue eyes, and looked to be about thirty. The Elf was black-haired and red-eyed. This one didn't look any older than an adolescent.

"I take it you've found some creatures of light to fish Master's property out of the lake?" asked the blond.

M-21 nodded. "They seem to be taking their task seriously, so that's a good thing. Half of them have just gone into town to buy a few things. They're planning to start tomorrow."

The man clasped his hands in satisfaction. "This seems to be a solid group. Tao, I do believe you may have been right this time."

The lightning-man grinned. "Aren't I always?"


	5. Chapter 5

The day was just fading into dusk when the group reunited on the shores of the lake. "I think we should get the grid set up tonight," said Ikhan. "That way, we can start right away tomorrow."

He took the length of rope and began reciting a charm to make it hover above the water's surface and glow on command. The rest of them began discussing how to get the grid in place. Yuna pulled out a map she'd drawn of the lake's contours. "We can halve through here," she said, drawing a bisector through the middle of the lake. "Then we can cross over four perpendicular lines. From our estimates, the lake is about a half a mile wide at its longest point, so it'll be a pain to get the rope across. Some of the shorter lines, we may be able to shoot across with an arrow."

Seira leaned over the map. "Actually," she said. "I think I can get these, even the longest one. Regis, would you secure things on this end?"

"Right." Regis held middle of the rope so it wouldn't drag, and handed the end to Seira. Ikhan made the rope glow, so it'd be easier to see in the approaching darkness, before digging around in his bag for the amulets, which he wanted to work on next. Seira nodded in thanks, wrapped the end of the rope around her hand, and then took off running... across the surface of the lake itself.

"Woah."

"I didn't know you could do that!"

Regis sniffed. "Don't gawk; it's inelegant."

Shinwoo grinned at Regis' expression. "Right."

By then, Seira had gone and come back, and they could see the glowing, green line of the rope stretch out across the entire lake.

With Seira and Regis leading, it only took another few minutes to get the other four lines in place. They stood side-by-side for a few moments, admiring what they'd created, before Ikhan extinguished the glow, and they decided to go back to the house and see whether they did indeed have a place to stay that night.

* * *

><p>Shinwoo was the closest to the door when they approached the house, and so was the one pushed forward to knock. A few moments later, the door was opened by a man with blond hair and blue eyes.<p>

"Ah, yes," he said. "You're the ones M-21 hired to clean out the pond, correct? Come on in."

They entered.

"We were just about to have dinner, you see. You're more than welcome to join us, if you'd like."

The team members exchanged glances before Ikhan spoke up: "Thank you, sir. We'd be happy to."  
>The man smiled. "Follow me, then." He led them down a hallway.<p>

"I am Frankenstein," he told them, "Owner of this house, and landlord to those who live here."

Ikhan nodded. "I am Ikhan," he said. "My comrades are Shinwoo, Yuna, Suyi, Regis, and Seira." each person nodded at his/her name.

They then turned into the dining room and saw four people already sitting there. Well, Frankenstein had told them that other people lived there, so they weren't surprised to see them there. They were, however, surprised to see that two of them were Balrogs.

The paladins immediately went for their swords, and the Elves stiffened noticeably.

Ikhan sighed when he heard the sound of blades being unsheathed.

"Shinwoo, Suyi?" he asked without turning around.

The two stopped in their tracks. "Yeah, Ikhan?" asked Suyi

"Remember what I said about talking to people before we try and kill them?"

"Yes..." said Shinwoo.

"So, you're not thinking of attacking without so much as a 'hi, how are you', then, are you?"

The two sword-wielders exchanged a guilty glance, sighed, and put their weapons back in their scabbards. "No, Ikhan," they said in unison.

Ikhan turned to Frankenstein. "Begging your pardon, sir, but my team and I would probably be more comfortable outside, after all."

The landlord was looking bemused by their reactions. "I assure you," he said, "that no harm shall come to you in this house."

They considered this. Not having to hunt their own food would definitely be a plus. Ikhan turned to look at his friends. "Any objections to eating here?"

No one spoke up. A few of them shook their heads.

"Right," said Ikhan. "My apologies for disrupting your meal."

"Not at all," said Frankenstein. "Please have a seat."

They did so. And there followed a rather awkward moment of silence before the Landlord thought to speak again. "Right. Well, as I said before, I am Frankenstein." He turned to the adolescent who sat at the head of the table. "This is Cadis Etrama Di Raizel; you already know M-21; the other two are Tao and Takeo."

The Human magic user nodded. "I'm Ikhan."

"I'm Suyi."

"Shinwoo."

"Yuna."

"I'm Regis and this is Seira."

Frankenstein seemed determined to be happy about the situation. "Well, then. Isn't this nice? Now we all know each other." He then proceeded to make small-talk for the remainder of the meal.

After a few minutes, even Shinwoo and Suyi, who had taken seats directly across from the Balrogs, were starting to get bored.

It was at this point, that Suyi decided it was time for a round of 'etiquette': a game she'd come up with during their latest trip back to to Escoria.

After a few weeks of uncomfortable social situations arising from their friends' and families' dislike for Regis and Seira, the quartet of them were more or less immune to intimidation by hostility. And so, they'd set about finding way to amuse themselves in otherwise dull social situations. There were several rules to the game 'etiquette' the most important of which being that one was not allowed to smile or laugh. And the game was initiated by use of a certain phrase.

"So, then, Shinwoo," said Suyi. "Did you make sure to polish your armor today?"

At this, the interest of the other five team members picked up considerably. Ikhan and Shinwoo were already trying to form a non-verbal alliance, and Yuna had sat up straighter at Suyi's words. Regis and Seira showed no reaction, other than for Regis to narrow his eyes in annoyance.

"Yeah," said Shinwoo. "Yeah, I did."

From here, the five people out of the loop were treated to a rather entertaining show. Raizel was the only one who had any clue what was going on, and that was because he was mildly telepathic.

Suyi was unusually solemn as the turned to the gray-haired man at the table. "M-21," she said, "Would you mind passing the gravy?"

"Here you go," he handed it off.

Suyi nodded in thanks. Then, she turned to the Elfin archer. "Seira, would you mind passing the salad?"

The silver-haired Elf complied without a word.

The Balrog, Tao, raised a glowing eyebrow at the choices of food the paladin had in front of her. She had a ladle full of gravy and a tong's worth of salad.

"Quite a dish you're assembling," he noted.

Suyi looked up in confusion. "Oh," she said. "You mean this? This isn't for me..." She placed the food on the plate of the Elf next to her. "It's for Regis. There you go, Regis"

There were a few moments there where the Humans most decidedly did not laugh; the absence of laughter was almost a sound itself.

The blue-blooded magic user appeared a bit disgusted, but he soon covered his expression. Then, without a word, he picked up his fork and tried the food in front of him. "You're really going to eat it?" deadpanned Shinwoo.

Regis regarded the swordsman a moment, before replying: "Wasting food is inelegant."

This was too much for Yuna and she tried to stifle a giggle, but couldn't quite manage it. Almost as soon as it left her mouth, she was annoyed.

And then there were five.

Ikhan fell next, courtesy of an absurb betrayal by Shinwoo. Suyi followed, and soon after was Regis, who'd involuntarily smiled at one of the idiotic things Shinwoo was spouting. Soon afterward, the victor emerged.

Regis was still complaining about it, as they prepared for bed.

The six of them sat on the bed in the room they'd chosen to sleep in. The house had been large enough for each of them to have their own room, but they didn't trust the landlord or any of his tenants, and had all piled into the largest of the guest bedrooms and spread their sleeping bags out on the floor in a circle.

"Seira, how do you keep a straight face like that? It's not normal." Regis complained.

Seira allowed herself a weak smile. "You're just saying that because you lost."


	6. Chapter 6

Several days of getting up at the crack of dawn during travel meant that, by five in the morning, all six of the party-members were up and restless. None of the other residents of the house were around, though, and they wanted very much to go outside and escape the confines of the house.

Well, they'd gathered together their belongings (all of them, since they still didn't trust the house-owner) and they were chatting quietly by the door.

"We need to unlock the door to get outside," said Yuna, "but we don't have an easy way to lock it after us."

"Couldn't we just leave it open? There're two Balrogs living here, I doubt anything could surprise them," offered Regis.

"It's a matter of manners, though. We don't want to go messing with the way they've got things set up," said Yuna

"Wait a moment, I think I've got something." Ikhan took out two bands of cloth, held them side-by-side, and recited a charm of intermediate length. His comrades waited until he was done to speak.

"What's that do, Ikhan?"

He held up one of the bands, and let go of the other. It had been charmed to maintain the exact same shape and height as the first one. It looked as though he now had only one band, that was twice as thick. He moved the one he held back and forth, and the counterpart moved back and forth, as well. The doppelganger even swayed like the one in Ikhan's hand. "We should be able to use these," he said.

With some effort, he pulled the bands apart from each other and slid them so that the door was now between them. He slowly brought the two of them together, so that the one on the inside was looped around the dead-bolt and molded to its shape.

Then, let got of the inside-band to pull the door shut. The one band which they could see remained stuck to the outside of the door, in the exact shape of its counterpart on the inside, looking as though it were wrapped around an invisible dead-bolt.

Ikhan then grasped the outside-band and slid it across the door frame. They could hear the sound that the dead-bolt made as it slid into place and locked the door.

"Almost done," he said. The next thing he did was release the spell. The band on the outside sprang away from the door and landed on the steps. As, presumably, had its twin on the inside.

"We won't be able to get back in by ourselves," said Ikhan. "Since the bands have to be touching when I say the spell, but that shouldn't be a problem. There are five people here, after all. We'll just knock when we want back in." He pocketed the cloth band, and grinned.

"Right" he said. "Now, I'm hungry. Want to go find some food?"

* * *

><p>An hour later, they had eaten and were getting ready to do a dive in the lake. The six of them were looking curiously at the five people who had come outside to watch them.<p>

"So, what are you doing here?" asked Ikhan. "If you have time to watch us, I'm curious about why you wouldn't do this job yourselves."

"Fire and lightning don't mix well with water," explained Tao. "We're just here to make sure the kiddies don't drown in the alligator pond."

Frankenstein sighed. "We're a rather refined group," he admitted. "We don't have much expertise when it comes to tasks such as this."

The Human magic-user seemed to accept this, and he nodded before turning back to his comrades.

"Right. Seira, Regis, you've never used this kind of spell before, right?"

"No," answered Regis. Seira shook her head.

"There's a few things to keep in mind, then: the amulets will drain your energy, so we'll want to rest every hour or so, to avoid exhaustion. When you get down to the bottom, walking along it will sometimes stir up silt and make the water cloudy. If that happens, we rise above it and rendezvous with the others."

"Also," said Yuna. "You don't want to go from too deep to the surface too quickly. You feel really great for a few minutes, and then things start to hurt like heck, and Ikhan winds up having to use a bunch of magic to un-paralyse you."

Frankenstein spoke up. "The phenomenon you refer to is called 'the bends,'" he said. "I was not aware it could be treated with magic." He looked curiously at the Human mage, who shrugged.

"It's caused by a sudden change in pressure," he said. "Knowing the cause means we can treat it and heal it," he looked at Yuna. "That only seems to be a problem in the ocean. At least, it's never happened to us in a lake before," he shrugged again.

Shinwoo was impatient. "We know, we know, we're not supposed to do stupid things in the water. Can we go now?"

Ikhan huffed. "Fine, Shinwoo. You'll be searching with Yuna."

Shinwoo grinned. "Let's go."

The pair of them waded out into the deeper water and ducked their heads under.

"Seira, I assume you're searching with Regis?"

She nodded.

"Right. Suyi, want to search with me?"

"Sure!"

The remaining four of them disappeared from sight soon after.

* * *

><p>For the first few minutes, moving about under the water was a fascinating sensation.<p>

It got old very fast, though.

Once they got over the fact that they were using magic, had to watch out for alligators, and were looking for a mysterious silver treasure, it was very much like cleaning a house.

It took them three hours to clear their section, and there was no sign of silver in any of the things they'd dragged to the surface. Yuna and Shinwoo had decided that, since they were down there anyway, they might as well get anything that might be of value or interest off the bottom of the lake.

By the water's edge, there was a small pile of flotsam: a few bottles of wine that had been in a sunken boat; a half-way rusted sword; a few fishing hooks.

The six party-members now sat in a circle, submerged below their mouths in the water. They were breathing the water back out of their lungs and taking in air before emerging fully: a process that took a few minutes.

After they were standing by the side of lake, and had removed their amulets for the day, Ikhan insisted on performing a low-level healing spell on each of them.

"Human lungs were meant to breathe air, not water," he explained, as he placed a hand on Regis' forehead and cast Healing. "Plus, water carries sickness more easily than air."

"Well, I'm not Human," Regis pointed out. He was curious about the spell, though."How did the incantation for that one go again?" he asked.

Ikhan recited it for him, slowly. Soon, Regis was able to repeat it. He was still fairly inept at it, as Ikhan managed to heal Yuna, Seira, and Shinwoo in the time it had taken Regis to heal Suyi.

"I think you're getting the hang of it," congratulated Ikhan.

Regis nodded. "Want me to heal you?"

Ikhan smiled. "Yeah, thanks. It's a pain trying to perform spells on yourself."

Regis was faster this time, and soon the party was stretching and talking.

"I can't believe we'll be doing this seven more times," complained Suyi.

"We probably won't," Yuna said. "Each time we do this, it's more likely that we'll find it. It's unlikely that it'll be in the last one we search"

One of the five people watching spoke up. It was the adolescent: Cadis Etrama Di Raizel. Up until this point, they'd never heard him say a word.

"Your party is a strange one," he observed. "How did people so different come to meet each other?" he wondered.

Yuna smiled. "Well," she said, "Ikhan and Shinwoo have been best friends since they met each other."

"That was when they were six months old," offered Suyi.

"They're some of the strongest fighters among our peers," continued Yuna. "But they're not the most traditional of warriors."

"Ikhan takes forever to decide whether or not to kill someone, so he has a hard time being in positions of authority."

"And Shinwoo can't keep a schedule to save his life, so that killed guard duty as a career option."

Shinwoo was shaking his head. "What about you guys, then? Suyi, you're only with us because you're dead-set on being a paladin rather than a bard."

"Both of her parents are bards," explained Ikhan.

Seira hadn't heard this story before. "What about you, Yuna?"

The Human archer shrugged. "I actually don't have an interesting back-story. I followed family tradition; we just happen specialize in outsider work."

M-21 spoke next: "I think Raizel was referring to the contrast between the other two members of your party and yourselves."

"Really? But they're not as different from the four of us as the four of us are from each other..." Suyi said.

Regis regarded the quartet of listeners coldly. "I am out here as part of my coming-of-age ceremony," he said. "As part of the requirements, I'm only allowed to use my powers in limited circumstances. These do not include defending ourselves from a group of humans doing nothing more than insulting us."

Tao grinned. "So you started out by insulting each other?"

Regis shook his head. "No. The humans with nothing better to do than torment us were part of a seasoned party." He turned to gesture sweepingly at the four humans. "These idiots became interested when one of the humans misused the word 'retarded', and the four of them tried to explain to their fellow humans why the use of the word was ill-conceived. They even suggested some alternate insults."

He smiled sardonically. "Their older humans did not appreciate the advice, and wound up picking a fight. The the aggressors left the battleground with moderate injuries."

"We were only trying to help," said Ikhan. "People don't realize how important word-choice is; not our fault they took it the wrong way."

"You emerged victorious against more experienced opponents?"

"Well, Shinwoo did. The rest of us more or less stood there and laughed."

Tao was eying Shinwoo doubtfully.

"Trust me," said Regis. "He's very strong, for a Human."

Shinwoo snorted. "And you're very nice, Regis," he said, "for an Elf."


	7. Chapter 7

It was the third day of searching, and the six of them were two-thirds of the way done with their section. They were taking one of the hourly breaks, and were stretched out their with their heads in the middle of an improvised circle and talking idly, when two Humans approached them. One was a man with short blond hair who was smoking; the other was a woman with long, blue hair and not much of a shirt.

They heard them coming, and stood up out of politeness.

None of the party of six really wanted to make the first move, so they left it to the newcomers.

"Hello," said the woman. "I am Mary and this is my associate Jake. We're looking for Cadis Etrama Di Raizel. Have you seen him?"

Shinwoo scratched his head. "I think he's inside. I'd go around front and try knocking on the door."

Jake smiled. "Well, the thing is, we already tried that and no one answered. Is there any way you could let us in the back?"

"Sorry," said Ikhan, "we don't have a key."

"We just need to leave him a package. Our instructions were to leave it in his house, if he wasn't home. Are you sure you don't have a key?"

"Yeah, I'm sure," Ikhan said.

The man, Jake, suddenly became a lot less friendly. "Well, see, here's the thing: we've been watching the house for awhile; we saw the two of them leave, and then we saw the six of you leave the house. We snuck over and tried the door and, wouldn't you know? It was locked."

He grabbed Ikhan by the collar of his shirt and dragged him forward. "So then, buddy, you sure you don't have a key?"

Ikhan was huffing at the indignity of the situation. "We can lock the door, but we can't unlock it," he said.

Jake looked doubtful. "Really? Sounds very unlikely to me. So, here's what I'm going to offer you: unlock the door and we'll let you live. Don't, and you're alligator food."

Ikhan glared at him. "You're not going to hurt a kid."

Jake threw him in the lake before he could say another word. Ikhan vanished below the surface and didn't reappear. A few alligators swam curiously towards where he'd entered the water.

The other five kids were looking angry, but their weapons were still on the ground.

Jake started walking forward, thinking to back them against the lake. Before he knew what was happening, however, the five of them were gone into the water, presumably to rescue their friend.

Mary started to go after them, but Jake held out an arm to stop her. "They'll have to come out eventually," he said.

"Well, certainly," said a voice from behind them.

"It's not like they can breathe underwater," said a second voice.

The two of them turned around, to see three figures before them. A gray-haired man stood in the middle of a trio. On either side of him stood a Balrog. They couldn't tell which two had spoken, as they weren't speaking anymore, but in truth it was of little matter.

Jake and Mary were not able to hang around after that.

* * *

><p>Once the two strangers were gone, the trio was uncertain of what to do next.<p>

"Well, the kids are in the lake," said M-21, morphing back to from Werewolf to Human form. "And who knows when they'll come back out..."

It was, in fact, six hours before the anyone left the lake. The five residents of the mansion were sitting out on the back lawn. Tao and Takeo were standing near the water, so as to let anyone beneath the surface see their glowing forms.

It was Takeo whom they singled out. "Psst!"

Takeo turned. Seira was holding her head above the water, but looked ready to duck back under at a moment's notice.

"Are the intruders still here?" she asked in a whisper.

Takeo shook his head. "They're gone," he informed the archer.

Seira looked relieved, and she rose further out of the water, making sure the Balrog spoke the truth, before sticking her hand back under the surface to gesture at her companions.

A few minutes later, after everyone had cleared the water from their lungs, the six adolescents made their way onshore. Ikhan made to start healing people, but Regis stayed his hand. "I can do that," he offered. "My mana reserves are still fairly full,"

Ikhan nodded gratefully, and sank down on the grass.

Shinwoo was the first person Regis healed, because the swordsman had something to discuss with their employers.

He strode towards M-21, who looked up at his approach. Shinwoo reached into his pocket and pulled out a silver cross on a chain. "Well, we found it," he said. "It was in the section we would have searched tomorrow."

Indeed, Seira, whom Regis had healed next, was already gathering up the ropes and stakes they'd used to make the grid.

M-21 took the cross and handed it over to Frankenstein, who cleaned it off with a cloth. He then presented it to his Raizel, who put it on.

"Thank you," Raizel said.

The party didn't really hear him. Seira and Regis were the only ones who didn't look exhausted, and they were supporting Ikhan between them. He'd acted a a focus of power for the water amulets for a good seven hours that day, five of them consecutive. He was wiped out. The rest of them had merely had to power their own amulets, but that still took a lot of energy.

Frankenstein noticed their fatigue and spoke.

"Why don't we head back to the house? I've got some food left from dinner, if you're hungry."

* * *

><p>The party of them went instead back to their chosen room, followed by their hosts.<p>

"You're all sleeping in the same room?" asked Frankenstein, surprised.

Regis regarded him. "Safety in numbers," he said.

"Ah."

Ikhan was placed on the bed, and the other three Humans reclined on their sleeping bags, not wanting to stand up, but still wanting to listen to the the conversation.

"We didn't have much of a chance to speak with them," said Tao and Takeo. "We heard when someone jumped in the lake, and came out to see what was happening, since there was nothing else to do."

Regis decided he should explain the situation, so he did, recalling the exact dialogue and actions that had occurred.

"You found a way to lock the door from the outside?"

"Ikhan did, yes."

"Was Yuna's idea," muttered the Human mage from the bed.

"After that, we set up a sanctuary in an underwater cave and stayed there for the rest of the day. Seira scouted out the perimeter of the lake every hour, and came across your cross while doing so.

"We didn't know who those people were or how much power they wielded, so we thought a strategic retreat would be best, under the circumstances. We were going to sneak out under cover of darkness and give M-21 the cross the next time we saw him, but we saw you during our last scouting trip before leaving, so we thought we'd save him a trip."

Now that the essentials were taken care of, the Humans were losing interest. "If that's all, I think we'll be retiring for the night." Regis said.

The others quickly got the hint and left.

* * *

><p>The five of residents of the house then convened in the living room.<p>

Tao whistled. "They really did it," he said. "They got Rai's earring back out of the lake. You know what this means? This means we can fight again!"

"We could always fight, Tao," pointed out M-21.

"You know what I mean, '21. We've got our general back! One who can lead us into war! We can finally defend ourselves against the Union..."

"Indeed," said Frankenstein. "The enchantments which warded the lake prevented us from entering, but you managed to choose some rather competent proxies, M-21."

"If only I could get them to stop calling me 'grandpa' life would be perfect," the Werewolf grinned.

The five of them schemed late into the night, while the six adolescents slept on, unaware of what powers they'd helped unchain.


	8. Chapter 8

The next day, after collecting the reward and eating through half of Frankenstein's food, the six kids left the mansion. Things were a lot quieter after that and almost everyone was happy about it.

"Tao, why don't you go terrorize travelers or something?" said M-21.

The Balrog had been restless and bouncing off the walls for the past hour, and Frankenstein wasn't the only one annoyed by it.

"Yes, Tao. More data on the moral development of Humanity would be helpful," suggested the landlord.

"But we found some worthwhile people already. Rai got to meet them and see that not all Humans are narrow-minded. We even got the cross back. Now we've got nothing to do!"

"Why don't the three of you go practice hand-to hand combat? We'll be fighting against the Union again soon."

Tao considered that.

"Right. Let's go, Takeo, '21!"

Takeo complied easily enough, and Tao dragged him outside. "Come on, hurry up!" he called back to M-21.

M-21 closed the book he'd been reading, and got up to follow them. He showed no sign of annoyance, save for the song he was humming: a little tune he'd picked up from the Human children.

* * *

><p>"Watch it, Shinwoo!" yelled Suyi, as the swordsman sidestepped a fireball.<p>

"Thanks!" he called, before moving forward to parry with one of the enemy.

The fight had been going well, if fights could ever be said to go well. Regis and Seira were participating only minimally in this one, because they were unfamiliar with using nonlethal force.

They were bounty-hunting this time, and were up against a group of five magic-users. The spells were nasty, but once you got close enough to them, they had practically no armor on.

With Ikhan and Yuna supporting them, they'd managed to back the five of them against a cliff-face and forced them to surrender.

Since they hadn't done anything up until that point, Seira and Regis were put in charge of restraining them and making sure they didn't escape while the party took them into town.

Two hours later, the six of them had a bag of gold, and some downtime before they were going to take up a new quest.

They had chosen to kill a good portion of it by seeing a local theatre troupe, as Regis and Seira hadn't seen Human theatre before. Suyi had managed to get them seats together mid-way to the front. The four of them had sat quietly though the whole thing, something Seira and Regis had been surprised by.

"You went two hours without speaking," he marveled, after it was over.

"We're not that bad!" protested Ikhan.

"Yes, you are," said Seira.

Suyi smiled. "Well, what did you think?"

"The protagonist died."

"It was sad," said Seira.

"It's supposed to be sad," said Ikhan. "But 'tragic' would probably be better word. I mean, sure, Elra died, but she sacrificed herself to save her people. If she had to die, at least it was a meaningful death."

"There's no no greater death than to lose your life for the sake of someone else," said Yuna.

"They wouldn't understand about that," said a voice from behind them. "Elves don't know what it is to die."

The six of them turned to look at the newcomer. He was an old man with a refined air about him.

The four Humans turned back to walking, and proceeded to ignore him, but the man wanted to keep talking with them.

"I'm Crombell the Gray," he said. "I understand you four are the ones who caught the highland mages."

"The six of us," corrected Yuna.

"Ah, yes. The _six_ of you. But I do wonder whether you'll remain six for very long? Do the four of you know anything about Elven culture? Those two are only in the Human realm because they've got no other choice. Once they've served their time here, they'll go back to their forests and never set foot outside them again. Do they really deserve your protection?"

"Who are you, wizard Crombell, to question our choice of party-members?"

"I? No one much, really. I simply represent a group of Humans sworn to protect our race: the Union. Perhaps you've heard of us?"

Their eyes widened. Everyone had heard of the Union.

"The four of you would make good members of our organization," he offered. "But you're still a bit naïve about this world and Humanity's place in it. Once you find your Elven friends have abandoned you, come join us."

Ikhan was angry at this. "I don't think we will, sir," he said.

"Suit yourself." With that, Crombel turned a corner, and they were again alone.

For a few minutes none of them spoke.

Then, Regis sighed.

"He's right, you know. Seira and I are only out here because we have to be. I'm counting the days til I get to go back home."

He was expecting them to be angry or saddened by his words. And it hurt him to admit it, because he really did like the four of them... but the truth was the truth.

He didn't expect it when Suyi laughed softly and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"So what if it is true?" she asked. "That doesn't mean he has the right to say it. We're the ones who have to put up with you day in and day out. We're the only ones allowed to complain about your motives."

"But I won't be around forever."

"Again, what does it matter? Just because you don't want to be here doesn't mean we aren't still friends. If you're only going to be with us for a few months more, then that's fine. We're grateful for the time we've got together. Didn't we ever tell you about Holly?"

"No."

"She was a swords-woman from Ura. She was exiled for manslaughter. Couldn't go home for a year, so she was part of our group during that time. She hated Escoria, couldn't wait to get back home, but she worked very well as part of the team, and we enjoyed her company, so that was all that mattered. It's like an unofficial rule of party-formation: be accepting of temporary members, because more likely than not, you'll be one someday. That's something Crombel doesn't seem to understand." Suyi thought about it. "Your case is even more clear-cut than Holly's was," she mused. "You haven't even done anything wrong, and you even seem to like our home."

She smiled at the two of them. "So don't worry about him; he's an idiot."

Regis looked at them, as though not quite able to believe their words. He didn't say anything, because he didn't feel able to speak.

But theirs was a party formed on mutual understanding, so he didn't really need to say anything.


	9. Chapter 9

There were a few quests in the next month that helped the group learn to operate as a team, but there was surprisingly little fighting: the Dragon they were sent to drive off wound up convincing them that their employers were the wrong-doers, and they'd abandoned the job, after giving the dark creature an amulet of protection; when they escorted the royal family of Ilorro to visit their neighboring monarchs a kingdom over, the worst they'd run into was Tao, who had let them off with a toll, because he knew them; and when they were hired to destroy blood-drenched sword of Ulfram the Slaughterer, Regis had taken it out with one blast of magic. The first real opportunity for combat came when they decided to cut through the Black Wood, to cut some time off their journey.

Regis and Seira were nervous, because they had just discovered that there were creatures called 'Orcs' and that their party was cutting through their territory. According to Yuna, Orcs rivaled Elves in their power, so they two of them were wary.

Anyway, they were walking down the path, when they saw a party of Orcs in the distance; they stepped off to walk alongside the road.

"This is their territory," said Ikhan. "It never hurts to show respect. Though, I doubt we'll get past them without a sparring match or two. Shinwoo and Suyi have had no one to fight but each other for the past three months," he shrugged. "Things could definitely be worse."

Regis raised an eyebrow. "Is that wise?" he asked. "The Orcs are significantly more powerful than you are, from what you've told us."

"Yeah? Well, so are you." He shrugged. "It'll be fine. It's not like we've never done this before; they're an honorable people. They like a good fight as much as the next person, but they do know when to pull their punches."

"How can you four know so much about these so-called 'Creatures of Darkness' and still not be able to recognize an Elf when you see one?"

Ikhan laughed. "We focused on researching the people we would be fighting. Elves and Dwarves, we've got tentative alliances with. Probably the fact that there're so many Balrogs around Escoria that got us started on it, but we were curious about the other races, and what conflict-avoidance techniques worked best when facing them."

Yuna was curious: "What I want to know is why you two never heard of the Creatures of Darkness before leaving home. Didn't your parents ever tell you stories?"

"Our parents died eighty years ago."

"Oh."

"We were raised by Regis' Grandfather. He took good care of us, but he left our education to the books we'd find."

"Seira's mother had a gigantic library we'd read in, but we never saw any information on any culture or people besides our own."

Seira shrugged. "Regis isn't allowed in court until after his ceremony, and I'm not going until he can come as well, so I've never heard of us having political relations with them."

"What about friends?"

The two of them looked away.

For a few paces, there was silence.

"I was the same way," offered Yuna. "I didn't grow up around other kids. I was six the first time I interacted with kids my own age and I didn't know any of the slang or the games or anything really. For a good six months, I was on the outside of every joke, but after that, it was like I suddenly knew everything. Some things, you just have to learn by diffusion. There's no way around it, but there's also surprisingly little effort involved. Just give it time."

"And remind us to tell you about the other six Creatures of Darkness later," said Shinwoo.

"There are six more?" Regis started to ask, but then he saw that the Orcs were close to hearing range, and so decided to shut up. There were close to a score of them.

The leader of the Orcs, however, decided to speak to them. He was an impressive man, and tall for an Orc, so that meant he was close to eight feet. "What are you doing in our woods, Creatures of Light?"

Suyi made a small bow to show her respect. "We were hoping to cut through the Black Woods on our way to Weston. Lord Kallingar still allows travelers, does he not?"

The leader seemed a bit suspicious at their knowledge of Orc culture. Most Humans simply turned and ran when they saw them, and those who didn't tried to kill them.

"Yes..." he said, unsure what to make of this new situation. Suyi nodded. "Good travels to you, Commander."

"...Good travels to you," he said. The two parties started to move past each other, and they would have, if not for...

"Hey, Shinbone! Soupy!"

One of the Orcs had called out to them.

Everyone in both parties, save Yuna and Ikhan, was surprised at the Orc's words. His commander made to reprimand him, when...

"That's Shinwoo and Suyi to you, ugly!"

Regis and Seira were starting to fear for the worst.

"Stupid Humans, why do you have such moronic names?"

"Oh, like yours is any better. What was it again? "Forty-four?"

"It's 'Twenty-four', you repulsive little pukes."

Suyi waved a dismissive hand. "Same thing!"

"Stupid Humans and their stupid memories..."

The Orc commander was genuinely unsettled. "You know these children, soldier?" he asked.

"Not the Elves," M-24 said. "Met the Humans once while on a scouting mission." He pointed at Shinwoo and Suyi. "Those two can't fight," he said, a huge grin on his face.

Shinwoo scowled. "Two can play at that game." He turned to Regis and Seira. "That's 24," he said. "He can't navigate."

"And he's got more enemies than any one person should have," added Suyi.

Ikhan shook his head. "Shinwoo, you can't navigate either," he said. Then he spoke to the Orc. "Nice to see you again."

"Hi, M-24."

The Orc nodded. "Ikhan, Yuna."

"Oh, come on!" Suyi was angry.

"You remember their names, but not ours!" Shinwoo protested.

M-24 shrugged. "They annoy me less." He sharpened his claws against his sword. "Speaking of things which annoy me, how _have_ you two been? Managed to learn anything about swords yet?"

Shinwoo grinned and unsheathed his blade. "Just try us, old man!"

M-24 looked to his commander. "Permission to engage in combat, sir?"

The commander looked as though he couldn't quite believe what was happening. "Carry on, soldier."

The Orc drew his sword, and Shinwoo and Suyi rushed him.

It really was an impressive display of swordsmanship on 24's part, because the two humans were no slouches when it came to fighting. What struck the Orc commander was the fact that neither of the two Humans seemed to be nervous in the least. They weren't bothering to protect themselves from rush attacks or use of claws, because they seemed to trust that M-24 would keep things on the level of a teaching fight.

It was amazing to watch.

The commander met the eyes of the two Elves across the fight, and they seemed to be in much the same state he was in.

After a few minutes, M-24 was looking very self-satisfied. Shinwoo and Suyi's swords were flung off to the side. "Not bad," he said. "Keep improving like that, and next time I may even use my claws."

Suyi was panting heavily, but that didn't stop her from scowling. "Darn...you...Twenty...four..." she said between breaths.

Ikhan smiled brightly. "Well, that was fun. We don't want to keep you though. Come on, guys, let's let the soldiers get back to their work."

The paladins retrieved their swords. Shinwoo gave an obscene gesture at their opponent. "We'll win next time!" he proclaimed.

Ikhan was annoyed, and he grabbed Shinwoo's hand to stop him from embarrassing their party further. "Come on, it's time to go. You're making us look stupid."

The Orc Commander, however, had something to say. "The Black Woods are not the most hospitable of places," he said. "Are you certain you can make it out before nightfall? It's unwise to make camp here."

"Oh, we know," said Ikhan. "We found that out last time we cut through here. We're just going to walk through the night and we should be out before morning. We can catch up on sleep in Weston." He shrugged. "It saves us five days of travel, so it's worth it."

The commander was considering something. "You know of Lord Kallingar. His abode is not far from here. You could stay in the guard-barracks with us for the night, if you'd like. You'll still come out ahead in time."

The Humans weren't expecting the offer.

"Won't that get you in trouble with your superiors? As far as you know, we could be saboteurs."

He raised an eyebrow. "Somehow, I think saboteurs would be more discrete."

Ikhan flinched. "You're probably right." He looked back at his teammates. "What do you think?"

"I'm for it," said Yuna. "Regis gets downright mean when he's sleep-deprived."

"No I don't," said the Elf. "Letting discomfort get the better of one is inelegant."

"Any objections?"

"How much do you want for lodging?" asked Shinwoo. "If it's more than an inn, we'd probably want to walk it."

"Ten silver pieces," said the commander.

Ikhan thought about it. "That's fair," he said. "All right, we'll take it. Thanks for your hospitality."

The commander nodded.

"So, then. Want us to walk your rounds with you? Or should we find somewhere quiet to wait?"

"So long as you can keep from fighting with M-24, you may accompany us. We've got another three hours before our shift ends."

"Three hours of keeping Suyi and Shinwoo in line. Oh, happy day..."


	10. Chapter 10

It was a momentous occasion at the black fortress. For the first time in two centuries, all eight Lords of Darkness were brought together.

They were: Kallingar, Lord of the Orcs and their host. There was also Roth, the Lord of the Nazgul; Hellspawn, Lord of the Balrogs; Foreth, Lord of the Dragons; Dron, Lord of the Trolls; Sorros, Lord of the Werewolves; Zamon, Lord of the Water-Watchers; and Cadis Etrama Di Raizel, Lord of the Dark Elves.

The important matters had been taken care of a few minutes ago, and now the eight of them were eating. At least, there was food at the table. Most of them stood about the room, exchanging news and information about their realms.

Lord Kallingar was talking with Lord Sorros when Dron called over to him. "Kallingar? Since when have you had Creatures of Light in the Black Woods?"

"What?" The Orc Lord walked over to the window to see what the other Lords of Darkness were looking at.

What he saw was indeed an unusual sight. The meeting room was in one of the more secure parts of the keep, and the windows were enchanted so as not to be visible from the outside. This particular window looked down into one of the courtyards by the guard-barracks. The guards were not aware that they were being watched. Perhaps this was a bit ill-mannered on their part, to have such a window. But, to be fair, the guards did not usually do anything worth watching.

It was meal-time, so many of the soldiers were outside, eating; this was not unusual. What was strange were the six children who were eating with them: two of them were Elves and four of them were Humans, but all of them looked more or less at ease. The Orc Lord frowned. "Hargov," he asked his aide, "Do the reports say anything about this?"

Warriors of the light were not welcome in the lands of darkness, as the vast majority of them were hot-heads who went around solving their problems with the proverbial chainsaw.

The assistant paged through the papers he'd received during the meeting. "Ah, yes," he said. "Commander Lorgal came across some travelers while on his rounds, and he offered them a place to stay for the night at the price of ten silver pieces; they accepted."

"Who are they?" asked the Lord.

"The report doesn't say," Hargov said.

"I know who they are," said another voice. Everyone turned to the Dark Elf Lord. Even among creatures of darkness, Cadis Etrama Di Raizel was strange; it was rare to hear him say anything.

"You've met them?" asked Kallinger. Why did it have to be Raizel?

Raizel nodded. "The Elves are Regis K. Landegre and Seira J. Loyard. The Humans are Han Shinwoo, Im Suyi, Suh Yuna, and Woo Ikhan. They're a party of warriors and they're likely traveling on business."

Kallinger was weirded out. "How do you know this, Cadis?" he asked.

One of his entourage, a Werewolf, smiled. "Rai knows everything," he informed the Orc.

Kallingar was suspicious. "Hargov, would you ask someone to send commander Lorgal up here?"

"Certainly, Lord."

Several minutes later, the Orc commander stood before them. With him was one of his soldiers. They both bowed before the assembled Lords.

"Well, commander, it appears we've got some house-guests staying with us tonight."

"Yes, Lord."

"Tell me, Lorgal, what do you know about our young guests?"

"Not much, Lord, so I've taken the liberty of bringing M-24 along. He's met the Humans of the party before."

"Tell us then, M-24, just who are they?"

"Well, the Elves I've not met before, but they seem to be decent enough kids. The short one is Regis, and he's out here on his 'coming-of-age' ceremony. His cousin, Seira, is accompanying him as his guardian."

"And the Humans?"

"Them I know quite a bit better. The Paladins are Suyi and Shinwoo. The archer is Yuna. The magic-user is Ikhan. When I first saw them, I was out on a scouting trip.

"They were eight years old, the oldest of them, and trying to take on a rogue Werewolf by themselves. Now, I know Werewolves. One of my comrades is a wolf," he nodded at M-21. "They're tough, but, honestly those kids might have fought her off: they were a scary group of children. But the fight was a close one, so I decided to lend a hand. I knew it would scare them, but scared children were probably preferable to dead children.

"Well, the wolf split once I joined the fight, and I was left with four kids who'd never seen an Orc before." M-24 shook his head. "I don't know who was responsible for raising those kids, but someone somewhere screwed up. They were afraid of me, but they were also curious enough to stay and pester me with questions.

The small magic-user wanted to know who I was and why I helped them. The other three wanted to know whether my claws were poison and whether I would fight them and where I lived," he chuckled.

"Well, since they weren't very afraid of me, I had them explain some of the landmarks on the map I was using: all I'd been able to find was a Human-made map, and I didn't have the patience to sort through their strange cartography. They seemed surprised that I'd marked off all the areas where Creatures of the Light dwell as 'enemy territory' but they did help me figure things out.

After that, I sparred a bit with Shinwoo and Suyi, and answered their questions before moving on. I didn't see them them again until today."

The Lords were not sure what to think of that, but they did realize that M-24 and Lorgal were done talking, so the two of them were dismissed.

Kallingar looked then to the Dark Elf. "You really have met them, then, Cadis? Where on middle-earth did you run into human children?"

Raizel inclined his head. "You know that I only recently reacquired this?" he gestured to his earring.

"Yes."

"When the seal on my power was stolen one year ago, it was thrown into the lake outside my home, and the lake was enchanted so that none of the Creatures of Darkness could enter it. Neither could Frankenstein, though he is Human, because he is part of my household. Instead, we needed to find some creatures of light to do the task for us.

"This was much harder than it should have been, as none of the light ones wanted anything to do with us. Those who did accept the task were unable to accomplish it. It was a month and a half ago when we came across the young party down there. We offered them a modest price for doing the job, and they took it for the challenge. We were hopeful about their odds of success and, indeed, they accomplished in three days what more experienced mages and warriors had tried to do for months."

"They helped a Dark Elf?"

"They didn't recognize me. They probably assumed I was a Human, like Frankenstein. They didn't recognize M-21 as a Werewolf, either, but Tao and Takeo were hanging around the entire time, so they must have suspected something."

"Creatures of the Light with courage? That's not something one sees often."

"No," agreed Rai. "It is not."

* * *

><p>That night, Seira and Regis were up later than the other members of the party. Seira was hanging around the courtyard by herself, and Regis had come to see what was bothering her. The two of them sat together in the moonlight.<p>

"It's just," she was saying. "I _like_ the others. And that's the whole problem."

"Why?" Regis wanted to know.

She sighed. "The only way I was able to make it through my own coming-of-age ceremony was by telling myself that the Humans who tormented me weren't sentient, and that it didn't matter if they insulted me, because they'd be dead soon enough anyway.

"It almost seemed like poetic justice: inferior lifespan for the inferior people. Why should we care about them? They treated me like dirt, but it's not like they were real people..." Her eyes were glassy with tears. "But they're not like that. If I'd met the four of them on a dark night, I wouldn't have been able to tell they weren't Elven: they're kind and loyal and courageous," she sniffed. "And they're going to die, just like all the other Humans out there." She looked up at her cousin. "Do you know the Human lifespan, Regis?"

He thought about it. "A hundred and fifty years?"

She shook her head. "No, that's the oldest Human who ever lived. Most don't make it past seventy."

Regis stiffened in shock. "Yuna said she was fifteen..." he trailed off.

Seira nodded. "Fifty-five more years. Perhaps a few more, if she's lucky."

Regis didn't speak.

"And that's if nothing kills them. They heal so much more slowly than we do, have you noticed? They're more vulnerable to injury, disease, and every other kind of evil out there. They're exactly the same as we are, why are they given so little? They could die tomorrow, or on the next mission..." a couple of tears tricked down her face.

"When I was fifteen, I wasn't anywhere near that mature," Regis mused sadly. "Ikhan knows more magic than I do, and he has better control over his abilities; they all do. The only reason we can even compete is because we have so much raw power." Most of Regis' efforts were going towards maintaining control. So it was a few minutes before he could speak again.

He did, however, eventually think of something to say.

"Even if it's horrifying," he said, "The truth is the truth, and the pride of a noble means facing what's real, and accepting it."

Seira nodded. "No one should live with closed eyes."

Saying those things didn't make them feel any better, though.


	11. Chapter 11

After they'd left the Black Woods, the Humans were feeling in high spirits.

For once, Regis didn't comment on the travel song, so it was left to Ikhan complain.

"Guys, can we maybe pick a different song?"

"We like this one!"

Ikhan thought about it. "Well, can you at least stop after you get down to 'no Balrogs on the bridge'?" he asked.

"Never!"

They continued on like that for some time. They were walking along the side of a lake, and being very loud and obnoxious about it, so it was really no surprise when a tentacle wrapped its way around Shinwoo's leg and hung him upside down over the water.

"Watcher!" he called out to them.

Seira made to fit an arrow to her bow, but Yuna stopped her from firing. "Wait," she said. "Watchers need to be touching you to talk to you," she explained. "Shinwoo, what're they saying?"

"Umm... Garmon here doesn't like how much noise we were making, so as reparation for waking him up, we've got to build a monument to him on that island over there."

The six of them considered that. Regis was glaring in annoyance. The others, however, seemed less hostile. "I suppose that's fair," said Suyi. She wasn't about to argue with someone vastly more powerful than they were.

Shinwoo paused, as though listening. "He also says that Regis, Seira, and Ikhan don't have to help, since they weren't singing."

"To heck with that," muttered Ikhan. "If we're going to build something, I want in."

"We'll help too," offered Seira.

Shinwoo listened a moment. "Garmon can take us to the island, or we can swim."

"I want a lift," said Ikhan. "I don't like getting wet."

"I guess I'm for riding with the Watcher," said Suyi.

"Me as well," said Yuna.

Regis and Seira preferred to run across the water.

So, after a few minutes, they were on a heavily-wooded island in the midst of the lake.

They were standing on the shore of the lake. Garmon was watching them lazily from the shallows. Yuna was drawing, one of Garmon's tentacles wrapped around her ankle so he could offer feedback on her design.

The others were talking about what materials to use. "Well," said Ikhan. "We should be able to start with wood, and then I can transmute it into copper. It'll be the wrong color for awhile, but it should turn green after a few months."

"He's not really green, though," said Suyi. "More of a greenish-black.

"I can't believe we're actually doing this," said Regis.

"You'd rather turn this into a fight?" asked Shinwoo. "You're usually the one telling us we should find non-violent solutions to our problems!"

The Elf shook his head. "That's not it, it's just... do you have to put so much effort into it? It's not like we're getting paid, and we'll never come back here. Why not just throw up a few rocks and carve 'Garmon is Great' across them?'

"Well," said Yuna. "It's either fight, retreat, or build the monument. We're not fighting, we aren't able to run away, so we're stuck making a monument of some sort. We're investing some time into this, no matter how we go about it. It's like life: even if you're only there a short time, you might as well have fun and make it something to be proud of."

"It's like anything else, Regis. Whatever you do, do it well," said Ikhan.

"Come on, guys, get into the spirit of the thing!"

Regis and Seira, against their better judgment, were smiling, caught up in the enthusiasm of their companions. "What about using polished stones for his eyes?" suggested Seira.

"Good idea," said Suyi, as she looked over Yuna's shoulder at the sketch she was making, and frowned. "Garmon, you have far too many arms," she said.

That night, they camped on the island, within sight of the statue they'd created. It was a terrifying replica of a creature with twenty arms. Its copper skin and eight onyx eyes gleamed in the moonlight, watching over the sleeping travelers.

* * *

><p>Their party stayed together for another ten months, raising heck and traveling the realms of light and darkness. During their time together, they didn't manage to kill anyone, but they did build up five stockpiles of gold, which they buried in various corners of the world, in case they needed them someday. They didn't come across any royalty in disguise, but they did tour the six marvels of middle-earth, and get kicked out each and every one their tourist towns' taverns (Shinwoo and Suyi had made a list on the subject: "33 ways to get thrown out of an inn"). They also didn't save the world, but they did camp outside the home of a corrupt Union official for five and a half weeks until he resigned. All in all, it had been a most fulfilling time for the six of them.<p>

And now it was over.

Regis' twenty months in the Human realm had been served, and now he and Seira were able to go back home. He was happy about it, but he was also worried. What if things had changed back at home? And he was also depressed. This might be the last time he saw Shinwoo, Ikhan, Yuna and Suyi.

They'd escorted them to the boundary of the Elven woods. Suyi and Yuna had hugged them both. Ikhan and Shinwoo had clasped their hands.

Then, the four of them turned and started to walk back to the Human town.

"Bye, Regis, Seira!"

"Don't do anything I wouldn't do!"

"Show 'em all what a tough guy you've become!"

"See you someday!"

Regis and Seira's expressions were stiff, but controlled as they called "Goodbye" to their friends.


	12. Chapter 12

When Regis saw his grandfather for the first time in nearly two years, he was treated to a rare show of affection by the dignified old Clan Leader, who had placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled at him.

"You've done well, Regis. You've proved yourself worthy to lead the Landegre Clan, once I enter eternal sleep."

"And you, Seira," he said. "Thank you for watching over my grandson."

She nodded. Seira hadn't said a word since saying goodbye to their companions.

* * *

><p>After informing their acquaintances that they had indeed survived their time in the Human realm, Regis and Seira were left largely alone. One of the first things they did was make a trip down to the Erollon River to meditate on the beauty of nature, and to throw a rock into the water.<p>

Regis looked at the stone in his hand. Ikhan had coached him through the incantation until he was truly sick of the words. And it still took a good two weeks of work before he was done.

Seira touched her amulet, which the quartet of Humans had insisted both she and Regis keep, that hung around her neck and put a hand on Regis' shoulder.

Her cousin looked at her. They wouldn't need to use the amulets; Seira had been a full noble for the past seventeen years and, now that Regis was of age, they were both in possession of their full powers. Regardless, they would keep wearing their 'bling' as a memento of their time spent with the Human warriors. And there was one more thing they would do.

Regis threw the stone into the water, and they both watched as it sank to the bottom.

They could still help their friends, even if it was indirect.

* * *

><p>Two days later, Regis' coming of age ceremony was held. The entire court was there to see it: all the Clan Leaders, all the Elven nobles, and the proceedings were overseen by the Lord herself. Before all his peers, his acquaintances, and his enemies among his people, Regis stood up and was declared to be an adult by the Lord of the Elves.<p>

After that, there was a meal, and Regis was able to observe the Elven court for the first time in his life. He'd always imagined it as a place where he'd finally be recognized as a worthwhile individual. No longer would he be a child, perpetually out of the loop and excluded.

And, admittedly, it did feel very good to sit there among his people, with Seira next to him, one among equals.

But something didn't quite feel right, and, as he chewed on his meal and observed the other dinner guests, he tried to figure out what it was. There was something of it in the way the nobles bowed to the Lord; it was part of the arrogance in the newcomer Ranger, who kept flirting with Seira; the very atmosphere seemed permeated with it.

It was power.

But it wasn't just power, he decided, it was a power incomplete.

But what was missing? And where had he seen this complementary component, to know it wasn't there?

Well, it had been part of Ikhan's door-locking spell; part of the planning that had gone into retrieving the cross-earring from the lake; and the majority of what had let them quest for over a year without resorting to combat on more than a handful of occasions. He could describe it easily enough, but what was its name?

No, it couldn't be.

Home was where everything he ever liked had always been; everything he admired was here. The Human realm was a place of perpetual annoyance, with its enthusiastic Humans and its 'Creatures of Darkness', it had been a place which he'd been only too happy to leave.

So why, here amongst his kin, did he feel that those who were closest to him lacked that which he admired most? Try as he might to see them that way, they simply weren't elegant. Because elegance was more than power, it was excellence.

The nobles who sat with him were even more powerful than he, and yet they did so little with their abilities. In fact, the Elven non-violence policy was only feasible because when Elves did enter battle, they were the most destructive of races. And, while there's nothing wrong with wiping out one's enemies... even allies tend to be shy of a people who, more often than not, end up destroying the battlefield as well.

And it wasn't just the fact that his Human friends were more elegant than the Clan Leaders, by his new definition, that bothered him—it was that the Human race would be more elegant than the Elven one. Humans were the ones who pushed forward weapons technology and spell-work. Their short lives demanded the battle-hardened competency of front-line soldiers in contrast with the placid lifestyle Elves normally chose. He himself was not elegant, and all his efforts to imitate his grandfather and the other Clan Leaders did nothing to change this.

Needless to say, Regis was very much preoccupied during the remainder of his ceremony. It was with sadness that Seira noted that no one else seemed to even notice.

Well, regardless of its focus, the party had to go on. So the meal was followed by a few hours of dancing. By early morning, the celebration was over, and that was that. Regis was now an adult: a fully-fledged noble.

* * *

><p>After going back to Escoria for a long-overdue reunion with family, the four humans decided to go on an easier quest to get a feel for having a smaller party again.<p>

So, they ambushed Dr. Crombel at an inn, while he was traveling on business, and shaved his hair into a mohawk, while he was sleeping. Ikhan had then turned his hair green with a spell.

They tried to lay low after that. Unfortunately, this proved to be easier said than done, as they seemed to have acquired a stalker: a woman named 'Iris', who was very pretty, spoke informally most of the time, and was completely and utterly insane.

She seemed to regard herself as a 'mother-figure' to the four of them, and kept trying to get them to join the Union, so they could be part of her team. Well, Iris was easily distracted, so they'd managed to lose her by running through caravan of traveling performers. Last they'd seen of her, she'd been marveling over one of the body-building strongmen.

So, what with one thing and another, the four of them thought it best to hide each time they saw Union members for a while, which led to a rather interesting eavesdropping session.

The four of them had been concealing themselves just behind the treeline of a forest, because they'd seen Jake and Mary in the tavern where they'd been staying. After managing to sneak out undetected, Shinwoo said he thought someone was following them, so they'd run a little ways ahead and hidden themselves.

Jake and Mary weren't looking for them, as it turned out. Or, at least, they weren't invested in it, as they immediately seized on the opportunity to harass a pack of Werewolves who were coming from the opposite direction.

"Hey, dogs, fetch!" Jake threw a stick off to the side and looked at them expectantly.

Mary laughed.

They'd followed the pack for another few minutes, until they succeeded in snapping the temper of one of the wolves. Then, they'd arrested the entire pack of wolves for breaking the non-aggression treaty by attacking Union members.

Now, Jake and Mary may not have been the most powerful members of the Union, but they were able to capture the Werewolves with a minimum of effort.

Well, there was really only one thing the quartet could do after that.

That night, the four of them broke into the Union headquarters and freed the pack. They freed the other three prisoners they found there, as well, because the Union didn't have he authority to act as a disciplinary body (that was Yuna's reasoning, anyway.) Though they did dress up like a team of assassins, because Ikhan had insisted on disguising themselves, and Suyi had taken it upon herself to coordinate their outfits.

Fifteen minutes later, the four of them had the place to themselves.

That was when the real fun began.


	13. Chapter 13

Regis and Seira were escorted into the empty council chamber by a Nazgul woman whom they'd never seen before. It was a large room with space for perhaps two-hundred spectators.

"There's the Dwarf representative," the Nazgul woman pointed out. Then, she rejoined the guards at the outskirts of the room. "Thanks," Regis said. Both he and Seira were solemn.

* * *

><p>It had been four months since Regis' coming-of age-ceremony, and he had not fit into his societal circle as well as his grandfather would have liked. When he sat in on Clan Leader meetings, he tended to expound on the virtues of trade with the Humans and the Dwarves. He was polite, but he seemed to have lost many of his standards during his coming-of-age ceremony. He was overly sympathetic towards the Human supplicants who came to beg favors from the Elves. And, certainly, a noble was expected to be upright and moral, but Regis was a bit too... compassionate. One had to have standards, after all. It was what separated nobles from the common Elves.<p>

Even Seira was demonstrating the same unsettling qualities, and she'd had one of the worst coming-of-age experiences Gejutel could remember. Sooner or later, the two of them would have to learn that this kind of behavior had consequences. Certainly, it was their right to act in such a way, but if they were going to get involved with the outside world, they weren't allowed to stay exclusively among the Creatures of Light.

This would help them in the long run, it really would.

* * *

><p>Well, the Dwarf named Hammer was quite possibly the fattest person Seira had ever seen. He ate constantly, and talked their ears off for a good fifteen minutes. Seira was beginning to seriously consider saying something rude to him, when the Human representatives, bound and gagged, were thrown into the room.<p>

They didn't have a chance to get a good look at them, other than to see that there were far more Human ambassadors than Regis and Seira had expected. They also appeared to have been tied up by the guards. However, almost the instant the guards let go of them, the humans escaped their bonds, stabbed the guards, and ran out the door... well, six of them did. The other four apparently hadn't been in on the plan.

Three guesses on who those four were.

"What the heck?" said Hammer. "Did that really just happen?" He took the opportunity to escape himself.

Regis and Seira weren't listening to Hammer. Regis had gone over to heal the guards, and Seira was doing her best to untie their Human friends.

The Elfin mage started with the mortal injuries and worked his way down in scale. The guards recovered quickly, and they soon noticed what Seira was trying to accomplish.

"What are you doing?"

"We know these four. They do not deserve this treatment," Seira explained.

"Don't untie them! They're criminals! Couldn't you tell from the others? Humans use the diplomat system as a dumping-grounds for their dregs of society. The ropes stay on until they've been judged for their crimes."

The Nazgul woman who'd led them in didn't look too good, but she stood up. "Did you see which way the escaped Humans went?" she asked Seira.

"Out the door, and off to the right."

The six of them were left alone without so much as a 'see you later'.

* * *

><p>Well, Seira and Regis decided 'to heck with the orders' and untied their friends at first opportunity. Then, the six of them sat down to catch up with each other.<p>

"So," asked Yuna, "what're you guys doing here? You don't seem like the types to get in trouble," asked Yuna.

"We must have rubbed off on them!" exclaimed Suyi.

"I don't know," said Ikhan. "Whatever got them here's got to be the Elven equivalent of our crime, and even _I_ have a hard time believing we did that."

Seira and Regis exchanged a glance. "Elven ambassadors aren't chosen as punishment. We don't lose any rank or status," she explained. "We just have to hang around the realm of darkness for five years."

"Oh." Suyi hadn't expected this.

"What did you do?" Regis wanted to know, looking concerned.

Shinwoo grinned hugely. "We broke into the Union headquarters," he said.

"You didn't," said Seira. She was disapproving.

Shinwoo nodded. "We let let Ikhan loose in their records archive."

"I can only imagine the damage that caused," mused Regis.

Ikhan folded his arms. "It's not like they can't put it back."

"Well, we got bored," Shinwoo continued, "and started wandering around looking for something to do; so Yuna shot out the eyes of all the portraits."

Regis shook his head.

"And Suyi and me carved some messages into the walls. We made a pyramid in the great-hall out of all the chairs we could find. We unlocked all the doors, and warped the keys with fire. That's about when they caught us," he finished.

Regis digested this. "Is there any point in asking 'why'?" he wanted to know.

Yuna shuddered. "There was this creepy lady from the Union: Iris. She seemed to think we were like Human dolls, or something. Kept going on about how she could mold us to be the best warriors ever. She wouldn't leave us alone."

"You trashed the Union headquarters because you were annoyed." Regis was trying to wrap his head around the concept.

A bit of fear mixed with Shinwoo's smile. "You only say that because you haven't met her," he said. "Anyway, Crombel wasn't about to cut us any slack after what we did to his hair-"

"You did _what_ to Crombel?" Regis was appalled. Even he would have hesitated before messing with the Union officials.

Suyi shushed Shinwoo. "They weren't there for that!"

"Oh, never mind." he said quickly. "For a few reasons, the Union heads weren't very happy with us, so they kicked us out of the Human race." He grinned like a maniac.

Ikhan shook his head. "Shinwoo, that's not something we should be proud of."

The swordsman just kept smiling. "Speak for yourself."

Yuna sighed. "It's not all fun and games, though. The Union turned us over as treaty-breakers; said we were the ones who maimed that pack of Werewolves a week ago."

"They claimed you as their own members?"

"Well, yeah, they weren't about to hand over Jake and Mary—remember them? Turns out they're pretty powerful... and they have a habit of antagonizing the Creatures of Darkness. Well, these people seem to have bought their story, and they hate us now."

Seira touched Ikhan's shoulder. "Sorry you've been falsely accused."

The Human just waved his hand dismissively, smiling slightly. "Oh, I regret nothing," he assured her. "but speaking of 'no regrets', is 'Ambassador to the Realm of Darkness' a title of honor among the Elves? You two don't seem to be too shaken up about it."

"Well, I wouldn't say 'honor'" said Regis. "It's more like they gave us the title in the hopes that we'd be scared straight and stop being such a nuisance in court."

"So we have had an influence!" Suyi was ecstatic. "Well, it's really good to see you two again—any ideas on what happens next? The description the Union gave us seemed to involve a lot of screaming and torture."

'I doubt that," said Regis. "Besides, we're too useful to trash. My guess is, they'll use us for slave-labor."

They mused about their future prospects for another few minutes, until a guard came to get them. "Come with me, all of you" he said.


	14. Chapter 14

From the way the guard treated the Humans (tied them back up), Regis and Seira saw that the realm of darkness had, indeed, accepted the Union's story that the four of them were criminals. The two of them exchanged a glance and resolved to correct this at first opportunity.

They were taken to the guard-quarters and the first thing they saw was Hammer the Dwarf, who'd apparently been recaptured already, in one of the cells. The six rogue humans, however, were nowhere to be seen.

An important-looking Nazgul man came over to them. He scowled when he saw the humans, but made an effort to remain civil.

"You can heal, yes?" he asked Regis.

"That is correct," replied the Elf.

"Can your fellow ambassador heal, as well?"

"Ikhan can, yes."

The man was thrown for a moment. "I meant the other Elf," he clarified.

"No," said Seira. "I'm an archer."

"Can any of the other Humans heal, then?"

"No," said Ikhan. "Just me."

"We've got injuries from trying to apprehend the six fugitives. Some are mortal—"

"Lead the way." said Regis. A guard escorted him over to the temporary medical area.

Then, the commander turned to Ikhan. "Now, listen, Human. We need help, and you're going to give it to us, or I'll kill you myself. Got it?

"Understood," said Ikhan. He really did want to help, and there was no point in arguing over motives when there were lives to be saved.

* * *

><p>Well, after ten minutes, they were down to the superficial wounds, and Regis and Ikhan were taken back before the commander (Ikhan was tied up again).<p>

"These six escapees seem to be some combination of magic-users and weapons-users. They use music as part of their magic, as well."

"Sounds like they're bards," said Suyi.

"Perhaps. Whatever they are, their attacks work especially well against Creatures of Darkness, and you're the only Creatures of Light available."

"You want us to fight them?" asked Shinwoo.

"That or I throw you in the most unpleasant hole I can find, and feed you only when it strikes my fancy."

"We'll do it."

* * *

><p>The six of them had wanted to work together and tackle the bards one at a time, but that idea had been shot down by the Nazgul commander, Irron. Instead, each of them was placed with a group of soldiers and they would be allowed to help the other Creatures of Light only after defeating their assigned bard.<p>

Well, Ikhan, Yuna, and Suyi were the ones who'd have the most trouble with this; they had no shot at taking down a bard by themselves, so the group had decided on using the amulets for this one. Seira, Regis, and Shinwoo would do their best to dispatch their own opponents as quickly as possible, and then come to the aid of the other three. Ikhan, Yuna, and Suyi were going to do their best to stalemate their opponents until help arrived.

The battleground for this fight was the capital city of the Nazgul territory, Solen City. The fugitives had escaped less than an hour ago, and the city was on lock-down. The citizens were still there, but hidden in their homes and various other shelters. This meant that the six of them could not retreat, and they'd have to keep the bards engaged in battle, to avoid giving them time to think about killing civilians.

Yuna had considered all this while the group of soldiers she'd been assigned to had tracked down their assigned bard. Now, they'd found him, and Yuna was pushed forward to fend, more or less, for herself. The soldiers' attacks had done nothing to damage their opponent, and their shield spells were largely ineffective against the bard's counterattacks.

So, Yuna settled herself on a rooftop, and set up to snipe her opponent with an ice-arrow.

She hit him on the first try, and the reaction was immediate: a wide and sweeping counterattack, which, unfortunately, only affected those within a ten-foot radius of himself.

Yuna jumped over to a different building and shot at him again.

The bard was starting to realize that he was dealing with a ranged attacker.

Yuna got off only five more shots before he spotted her, then things got tense.

After clambering up to the roof, the bard thought he'd finally be able to take out this annoying archer. He smiled, as he started to sing one of his summoning songs.

That was when Yuna used the amulet to put up a spell of sanctuary.

Well, the bard had summoned a tiger and a bear to fight for him, but neither of them were able to break the sanctuary spell around the archer. Neither did his own weapons seem to have any effect on the glowing walls of energy. The only positive aspect of the whole situation seemed to be that the archer couldn't attack him while in the sanctuary spell.

Well, there was only so much attacking a wall the bard could do at one time. So, he decided that if the archer liked her sanctuary so much, she could have it. He turned to go.

Only to have an arrow hit him from behind.

When he turned back around, the sanctuary spell was back up.

He was starting to really hate that archer.

* * *

><p>Ikhan preferred a different style of fighting. As a magic-user, he couldn't use armor or non-magical weapons. Most people assumed this meant he was weak and helpless without warriors to support him; however, there were two important facts which they often forgot to take into consideration: substituting his robe of protection for armor meant he could run a good deal faster than the average warrior, and magical weapons could damage his opponents from a distance.<p>

Ikhan had faced against his bard in an open area, and the first thing he'd done was summon a magical hammer that followed the bard around, attacking him. All the hammer required was periodic re-summoning, and it would attack his opponent as long as Ikhan was not blocking an attack.

This meant that Ikhan was able to use his speed to great advantage. He was using his amulet to give him a more or less endless supply of stamina, and he hadn't stopped running since he'd cast the hammer spell.

The bard, as it turned out, was not a ranged attacker. He'd chased after Ikhan for the past fifteen minutes, defending himself from the floating hammer and the occasional magic-missile which Ikhan was able to shoot at him. Ikhan was maintaining his health by healing himself each time the bard got in a lucky hit.

The bard was starting to lose the annoyed expression he'd adopted and was moving on to full-on rage.

Ikhan, however, wasn't extremely worried. Certainly, he couldn't defeat this opponent, but he could stalemate him til the end of time.

* * *

><p>Suyi was perhaps in the worst position of the three stallers, as she had no way of making ranged attacks. Her only method of buying time was a dangerous one. Suyi did have a healing spell, but it wasn't always reliable, as the amount of health she could regain was equal to the damage she dealt her opponent.<p>

Like Ikhan, she was using her amulet as an endless well of stamina, and she'd engaged her opponent in combat.

Unfortunately, this was a bard who relied on summoning, and he'd gone all 'convert enemy' on three of the soldiers she was with: a Dark Elf, a Troll, and a Balrog. This caused some problems, but not as many as might have been expected.

As the three soldiers were being used against their will, they were a good deal less intelligent than normal fighters. Their patterns of attack were robotic and predictable.

It would be wrong to kill them, but Suyi wasn't sure she'd be able to do that, anyway. The plus side of having to fight against such powerful people meant that they healed very fast themselves, so Suyi didn't feel too bad about giving them minor damage to power her own healing spell and keep her health up.

It was an unstable equilibrium she was in, but even an precarious place of balance gives a fighter some peace of mind. Now, it was a matter of endurance.

* * *

><p>Now, Shinwoo didn't know it, but he was up against the most powerful of the six bards. This particular man was the leader. He could affect your emotions with his singing: terrify you into surrendering, charm you into joining him, even use his harp as a fairly decent weapon. He was truly a force to be reckoned with.<p>

Well, Shinwoo had ambushed him him out of a dark alley, and, by a stroke of luck, he'd managed to land a critical hit on the man during the opening blows, leaving the him paralyzed for the next three minutes.

And just like that, Shinwoo had defeated his opponent.

* * *

><p>Seira's fight had lasted little longer. Like Yuna, she'd chosen to snipe at her target. The difference between them was that Seira was able to shoot "Artemis' Arrow of Sleep" at her opponent and knock him out before he really knew what was happening. It was one of her more powerful spells, but it consumed nearly all of her mana, and left her greatly weakened for the coming fights. Seira didn't much care; it was worth it to be able to take out her opponent right away, and she wanted to go help Suyi.<p>

* * *

><p>Regis was feeling nervous about his first fight as a full noble. Since having come into his full abilities, all he'd noticed was that his power reserves had increased. Which would have been great if he wanted to go on a destruction rampage, but as things were, his extra powers weren't of much help.<p>

He'd need skill to fight against a Human mage. Especially since they were surrounded by buildings full of innocents.

He started out with a few low-power attacks with his light-beam spell... only to see them have no effect on the bard whatsoever.

He tried again, increasing the power, and still nothing.

The bard attacked next, and Regis didn't manage to dodge all the way out of the way, and he wound up bleeding in three different places.

Shocked at his own helplessness, Regis did the only thing he could think to do: he put up a sanctuary spell, and waited for help.


	15. Chapter 15

Well, after Seira showed up to help Suyi, and Shinwoo had met up with Ikhan, the four of them had all showed up to help Yuna with her own fight. By the time they were finished, five of the six bards were recaptured. Ikhan had just done some minor healing on Suyi and Shinwoo, and it was about this time that they started to wonder what had happened to Regis.

* * *

><p>The Elfin noble would like to think that things looked a great deal worse than they actually were.<p>

Certainly, his clothes were quite liberally blood-stained, but that was merely a consequence of the fact that he'd been unable to perform Healing in the sanctuary spell, and had had to wait a half-hour for his wounds to heal at their normal pace.

Also, the predatory smile which the bard wore was completely unjustified. Regis was safe behind the spell powered by the amulet he thought he'd never need to use. It wasn't as though he needed to leave in the near future, so there was really no justification for the smirk worn by his opponent.

And the insults all seemed to blend together after the first fifty. There were only so many relatives one could hear insulted or profane combinations of words that one could listen to before it all got dull. A few months ago, Regis might have cared because to allow an insult to stand against his loved ones was inelegant. But, honestly? After everything that had happened, he'd come to terms with the fact that he had no elegance to start with. Now, the important thing was to remain alive until his team got there, so that he could tell them about the dangers they faced in this strange opponent.

Regis nearly worried himself sick that the other bards had been just as strong as this one, and that his teammates were now dead. The bard, however, had taken up watch outside bounds of his sanctuary spell, and was patiently waiting for Regis to grow tired of being in one place, preventing him from checking on his teammates. Then, Regis realized he could use his mental link with Seira to see what was going on.

He didn't want to risk distracting her, so he chose the mental equivalent of walking by an open door to see whether the room's occupant is busy before he did anything else. Seira seemed to be done with her fight.

"Seira?" he asked.

"What is it, Regis?"

"Is everyone all right?"

"Yes, we're all fine. We just recaptured the last of the bards. Where are you?"

"I'm still having trouble with mine, actually. Were your attacks effective against them?"

"Of course."

"That's a relief, because I'm not faring any better than the Creatures of Darkness. None of my spells seem to affect him, so I'm in a sanctuary spell right now."

"One moment, Ikhan thinks he knows something... he says to ask him what he thinks of the Elven race."

Regis wasn't sure what that would accomplish, but he decided to try it. "What do you think of my people?" he asked the bard.

"Elves? I hate 'em, kiddo. Why do you think I chose you people as my racial enemy? Most other bards go for Dragons or Trolls, but you know something? you never need an edge so bad as you do when you're fighting an ally." He smiled nastily at the Elf. "Ready to come out and play yet?"

Regis considered it. "Perhaps in a few minutes."

He then relayed the information to Seira, and, after a few moments, he received a reply.

"Suyi says that all bards are naturally strong against the Creatures of Darkness, but that they're allowed a choice of an enemy race against whom they're especially deadly. Your opponent seems to have chosen Elves for this power."

"Is there anything I can do?"

"Stay in the sanctuary; we're on our way. Suyi thinks that he won't have any advantage against Humans."

"Right."

* * *

><p>While Regis waited for them to arrive, he took the time to discuss strategy with Seira and the others. Even if the bard had no racial grudge against his own species (Humanity), he would still be an opponent to take seriously, and the optimum situation would be one in which all four of the Humans could be put on the offensive.<p>

That meant he and Seira would need to act as defense.

That wasn't going to be easy. A good defensive mage could single-handedly make all the difference in a fight, but Regis was not a good defensive mage. He was a combat mage with more power than he knew what to do with, and an extreme weakness to their current opponent.

This really wasn't going to be easy.

* * *

><p>Regis had broken sanctuary while the bard was distracted by the arrival of the other five members of his party, and what followed was an aspect of fighting which he'd always really hated. Since Ikhan would be their combat-mage, Regis was doing his best to hold down the defense. Seira was hovering by Yuna, ready to throw up a sanctuary spell or two if need be.<p>

Because, while the two Elves weren't able to attack the bard directly, their powers still worked on Humans. This meant that Regis had to split his attention between dodging the bard's attacks, healing his Human comrades, and renewing the Luck and Speed spells. It required attention to detail, and it would have been annoying, if the consequences of a lapse in concentration weren't so terrifying.

For his part, the bard had summoned a few score of pet-spells to attack them from all sides. They seemed to work much like Ikhan's hammer spell, though they looked different. They appeared as small four-legged creatures, though Ikhan assured them that pet-spells weren't actually alive. Each time Regis stopped to perform a spell, he wound up taking damage from those things, but it was critical that the offensive players be given a chance to thin out the enemy, so he dealt with it as best he could.

Shinwoo and Suyi attacked the bard directly, so he was too busy to summon anything else. Yuna and Ikhan took out the pet-spells while their creator was distracted. Ikhan favored a spell that knocked any enemies within a five-foot radius away from him while dealing damage, followed by magic-missiling them into oblivion. Yuna, backed into a corner of the rooftop on which they were fighting, shot at any that approached her.

There were a few times in there when Suyi and Ikhan came dangerously close to dying, but Regis managed to cast Healing before things turned too dire. He forgot once to renew the Speed charm before it ran out. Which nearly killed both of the paladins, as that spell was the only thing allowing Shinwoo and Suyi to parry with the Bard. Regis had to scramble to renew the spell and heal the two of them before something awful happened, and barely succeeded. Seira had a somewhat easier time of it, though she kept having to leave Yuna for brief periods when the bard fired off ranged attacks at her; once, she had to throw up a sanctuary spell around the two of them when a summon lunged at them suddenly. After those few minutes of risky fighting, however, all the pet-spells were taken care of, and the four Humans were able to gang up on the bard.

Shinwoo and Suyi suddenly broke away from fighting him and Ikhan and Yuna hit him with a few ranged attacks. Shinwoo attacked immediately after that, and bought Suyi enough time to sneak up behind him and put her sword to his throat, eliciting a surrender from him. The soldiers, who up until that point could only watch, had taken it from there, and the whole operation had finally been concluded.


	16. Chapter 16

AN: Ha! Finally done! In case you're wondering: no, I won't write a sequel, though anyone else who feels like using aspects of the Noblesse/Middle Earth/Dungeons and Dragons combination in their own fics is more than welcome to. Heck, you can even write an AU, or reworking of this fic and I won't care. Thanks for reading! Enjoy the conclusion...

* * *

><p>After the fight was over, the six of them were in that state of exhaustion which renders everything much simpler than it would be under normal circumstances. So, when Commander Irron wanted to talk to them, they were a bit less polite than they might have been.<p>

"I'd like to thank you for the assistance you've given us," he said, grudgingly.

"Okay," said Shinwoo. He was more in the mood for food than for words at that point.

Irron didn't like having to thank criminals: these Humans were people who'd harmed Creatures of Darkness for amusement, and they'd only helped under threat, so there was no merit to their actions. Still... they deserved something for what they'd done.

So, he placed these Humans in a separate chamber from the six bards and the Dwarf, and ensured they'd be tried separately. He even allowed the Elves to remain with them, and gave them the courtesy of not placing guards in the room.

That should be enough to satisfy honor.

* * *

><p>There was a full-house of spectators for the trial of the Dwarf and Human ambassadors. Those on trial were placed on a dais in the lowest part of the room, while up along the high table were the eight Lords of Darkness.<p>

Normally, it was only one or two Lords who tried the ambassadors, but the magnitude of the bards' crimes, and that fact that the Lords had been in the area anyway, had meant a full trial with all eight Lords for this cycle's ambasadors.

"Hammer Lores," said the Nazgul Lord, Roth. "You stand accused of petty thievery and attempting to escape the dark realm before the end of your term of duty."

Hammer tried wheedle some sympathy out of the listening Lords. "Yes," he said, "I admit to my crimes, but I assure you, I meant no harm. I just wanted to go back to my family, and I needed some collateral to get me back to the Drawven realm." His argument, while plausible, was somewhat hurt by the fact that he ate during his entire defense.

The leader of the council, Lord Roth, was not overly sympathetic with the Dwarf, as this was his third term served as a Dwarf ambassador.

"Dwarf Hammer," said Roth, "You are well-aware of our rules and regulations by now. For your insubordination, you shall spend your time in our realms as a manual laborer."

Hammer nodded. He'd been through the drill before, and was more or less apathetic about the whole thing. At least this time he'd gotten to do some looting.

The Dwarf was taken from the council chamber with only a token protest.

Then, it was time to judge the Humans. These trials were being done in two batches, as per Commander Irron's request.

From Hammer's performance, the Bards seemed to think there was a chance of getting out of this through sympathy. Their leader acted as the speaker for the six of them.

"You stand accused of twenty-six counts of attempted murder, and attempting to leave the realm of darkness prematurely."

The bard leader put the best face he could on it. "We're not supposed to be here—we were falsely accused! We know we messed up, but we were scared! We've never hurt the Creatures of Darkness before, we swear it! Please, just give us a chance to show our innocence!"

And the Human actually did look distressed, so Roth decided to comply with his request.

"Irron, would you send someone to get the mirror?"

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, a wall-sized covered mirror was brought into the room and placed behind the dais where the prisoners stood.<p>

"You have asked for a chance to prove your innocence," said Roth, "and you shall have it."

He gestured to the object behind them. "This is the mirror of true-nature. It will reveal you for what you really are."

The bards didn't look too thrilled at the prospect, and were starting to realize that their sympathy-mongering had backfired on them. They couldn't very well say anything at this point, though. When a wreck is inevitable, sometimes all you can do is sit back and watch the explosion.

The sheet was removed from the mirror.

Now, as the eyes see, the bards were all moderately handsome men, and this did not change. However, they did not look so attractive when viewed in the mirror.

They appeared as corrupt and twisted figures, with devious, scheming expressions, and eyes which did not always point in the same direction. Most disturbing of all, however, was the blood which dripped from their reflections' hands.

Lord Roth raised an eyebrow. "Do you still claim to be innocent?" he asked.

Well, the six bards knew when to leave worse-enough alone, and they remained silent.

Roth took their silence as an answer. "For your crimes against our peoples, you six will be imprisoned for the remainder of your five years in the realm of darkness"

The six of them were led away.

No one was in a very good mood after that. They still had one more trial to go, after all, and dealing with Humanity was always so very depressing...

So everyone was surprised when the Dark Elf Lord spoke up.

"With the council's permission," he said. "I would like to offer the other four Humans and the two Elves a place among my court."

Well, after that, a great deal of arguing commenced.

"Cadis, I know you've got a soft spot for outcasts, but the Human ambassadors are always scumbags."

"You want to invite _that_ into your home?"

"The Elves, certainly, there's a precedent for that, but the Humans..."

"I don't think it's a good idea, Raizel."

And so on.

They were so preoccupied with Cadis Etrama Di Raizel's proposal, that they failed to remember to have the mirror of true-nature removed from the hall, and no one even noticed that the Humans and Elves had been brought in, until one of them started laughing.

* * *

><p>Well, when Commander Irron had come to get the four Humans, the two Elves had insisted on coming with them, saying that the six of them were a team and refused to be separated.<p>

Being rather too depressed to argue about it after the last trial, Irron hadn't protested.

And so, the six of them were escorted into the council chamber without a great deal of ceremony. Not many noticed their entrance, as the council Lords seemed to be discussing something among themselves. The six of them found themselves ignored for the moment, and set about finding something to do in the interim.

Suyi tried to straighten her hair in a mirror, which someone had placed a few feet behind the dais on which they stood. She fiddled with a few strands for several seconds before tapping Seira on the shoulder. "Is it just me," she said, "Or is that mirror wrong about the way my hair looks?"

Seira tilted her head. "You know? I think it is," she turned to her fellow archer. "Yuna, don't believe the mirror; it's a liar."

Yuna had to look at it for a few seconds before she got it. "Oh, it makes you prettier? Seriously? I've got to get me one of these!"

Indeed, all six of their reflections looked much nicer than normal, even Seira's and Regis', and Yuna wouldn't have even believed that was possible, if she weren't seeing it with her own eyes.

Ikhan was comparing reflection with reality. "This is hilarious," he commented.

Regis sniffed. "Shinwoo, you look like an absolute pansy."

Shinwoo, rather than being offended, just laughed. "Well, look at who's talking. If I didn't know any better, I'd swear you were girls, the both of you."

Ikhan snickered, and put on a falsetto voice. "Oh, Regisina! Let's do our nails and then we absolutely must go clothes-shopping. Your outfit looks positively mannish!"

Regis had his face half-covered by one of his hands, shaking his head back and forth at the sheer idiocy of it.

Seira, who was helping Suyi braid Yuna's hair at this point, looked up at Ikhan's words. "Don't listen to them, cousin. I think your clothes look lovely." Seira was the master of the poker face, and she said the line with such sincerity that Regis couldn't help but break into helpless laughter.

It was then that they noticed the attention of everyone in the room was fully on the six of them.

Regis straightened up hastily. "My apologies," he said. "You know how Humans are with novelty," he said, ignoring the fact that he'd been the one making the most noise. "You summoned the four of them here, yes? But the six of us are a team; we face our fate together."

The Leader of the Council, Roth the Nazgul Lord, managed to regain his composure. "Yes," he said. This wasn't what he was expecting. These were the four Humans who were treaty-breakers. They'd antagonized a family of Werewolves and tried to imprison them in the Union headquarters. How could they have such positive reflections in the mirror? But... now that he thought about it, these were the Humans the Lords had seen in the Black Woods, were they not? These kids were scapegoats, had to be...

"Cadis, here has offered to house the six of you during your stay here." Roth decided to say. He gestured towards a Lord at the very end of the table: one who had dark hair and red eyes...

They'd seen him before.

"Is that...?" Shinwoo was amazed.

"I think it is," Seira put in.

"Since when have guys with alligator-infested lakes been on the council of eight?"

Ikhan was thinking about it. "Turn it around," he suggested. "'That guy has a lake filled with alligators in his backyard: he sounds like someone on the council of eight.'"

The six of them looked at each other.

Then, they began to eliminate possibilities.

"Dragon." said Suyi, pointing at Lord Foreth.

"Balrog," said Seira, nodding at Lord Hellspawn.

"Watcher," said Ikhan, noticing Lord Zamon.

"Nazgul," Shinwoo pointed out Lord Roth.

"Troll," Yuna gestured to Lord Dron.

"Orc," said Regis, pointing out Lord Kallingar.

Shinwoo was looking between Lord Cadis Etrama Di Raizel and Lord Sorros and scratching his head. "Ikhan, how do you tell the difference between a Dark Elf and a Werewolf?"

"Don't know," answered the mage. "I suspect that gramps is a Werewolf, though, so I'd say Sorros is the Dark Elf."

They looked up at Raizel, who shook his head.

"Darn it!" said Shinwoo. "We were so close!"

Raizel had a small smile on his face.

* * *

><p>There were eleven people dining in Frankenstein's house that evening.<p>

"So, we're part of the Dark Elf court now?" asked Yuna. "I think we might be the wrong species."

"Actually," said Tao, "Rai's the only Dark Elf here. The rest of us were born of other peoples."

"Yeah, but you're all Creatures of Darkness, at least. It just seems strange is all..."

"We're not all Creatures of Darkness; Frankenstein is a Human."

"Really?"

"Yeah. He got kicked out, much like you four. He's the one who inspired the formation of the Union."

Shinwoo and Ikhan exchanged a disturbed glance. "That was hundreds of years ago, though, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

Suyi shuddered.

The six of them weren't sure what to say to that. Tao, however, had decided that he may as well keep going.

"Takeo, '21, and I aren't true Creatures of Darkness either. We used to be Human, until the Union turned us into this."

"You two were... Human?"

"The three of us, yeah. You're right about '21. He's a Werewolf now, but he wasn't always." Tao was trying to be casual about it.

The six adolescents looked at each other before deciding to let it go. They'd be here for five years, after all. They'd find out eventually. Right now, there were a few matters that needed discussing.

"So, what does the Dark Elf court do?"

"Whatever we want to. See, we're more like a group of temperance than a group of heroes. We protect the realm of darkness, and we antagonize the Union, of course, but we five have the potential to be some of the worst threats middle-earth has ever seen."

Tao may not have been an evil man, and he was very good at affecting megalomania, thus his tirade was more entertaining than frightening.

"We're Creatures of Darkness with an insider's knowledge of Humanity," he went on. "Back when we were controlled by the Union, we did things we'd rather not think about. Frankenstein used to be darned scary before he grew a conscience. And Rai? A thousand years ago, he was the one who gave the Lords of Darkness a bad name."

"And you're not like that anymore?" Regis wanted to know.

"Well, no. Or at least, we try not to be. But we're all tainted with blood, one way or another. You think you won't fit in? Who was it again who was kicked out of the Human race for excessive violence?"

Yuna laughed at that.

"What about us?" Regis wanted to know. He and Seira were Elves, not Human.

"Exiled from the Elven forests for being overly sympathetic? Rai would have taken you two in, even if the Humans weren't involved."

M-21 spoke up. "Aside from the whole 'lost Humanity' motif we've got going with our Human members, the six of you would make valuable additions to our court. We've got the big guns: Rai and Frankenstein; the three of us form the mid-level offense—but we don't have a lot of finesse to work with." He shrugged. "Tao's the best of us at subtlety, but he works at optimum with overly-complicated systems, not everyday problems."

"Saw the six of you take out that bard together," commented Tao. "Couldn't do anything to help, of course, but that's how we knew you were in the realm. That was some impressive teamwork. I've never seen Elves who were able to function effectively as defensive support before."

Seira nudged Regis. "They think we're elegant," said Seira, trying to get a smile out of Regis.

Regis scoffed. They'd been impressed by that haphazard mess? Give him another year of experience, then he'd show them elegance...

Still, tying themselves to the Dark Elf Court would give the six of them a permanent connection: one that wouldn't be broken after a score of months... or even five years. That was something Regis had been worrying about. Eventually, he'd have to go back to the Elven forest and lead his clan, as would Seira. This would give them an ironclad excuse to maintain ties with their Human friends.

"Well, we should be able to kill time here, if nothing else," commented Regis.

Seira nodded.

"Cool," said Ikhan. "We've never worked in a team this large before."

Tao clapped the Human mage on the shoulder. "Welcome to the court."

The eleven of them talked for many minutes after, clarifying assumptions, working out team-strategy, planning out long-term goals for the next five years...

Camaraderie, mused the Elf, that was the atmosphere in the room. Admittedly, it wasn't the most impressive of things to watch, but, regardless, Regis was coming to see it as one of his favorite forms of elegance.


End file.
